Out in the Open
by StarvingLunatic
Summary: The sequel to Behind Closed Doors. Sesshomaru and Kikyo are trying to maintain their relationship, but its hard with a coworker liking Kikyo and Sess having to show a demon princess around town.
1. Breakfast

I don't own these characters.

Warning: this fic earns that M rating right now. If that's not your thing, come back for the second chapter.

Second warning: this fic is going to have some yuri/femmeslash in it later on, so if that's not your thing, you might want to turn back now.

Out in the Open

1: Breakfast

Sesshomaru groaned as he felt movement against his body. He knew what it was and discovered that such action was better than having an alarm clock, or worse depending on the circumstances. His body noticed the smallest motion and woke up almost instantly because of it, which was fine when he had work, but it was not fine on the weekend, which it happened to be.

He opened his golden eyes and caught the usual culprit that stole his sleep from him, Kikyo. What a lovely thief, his mind commented, causing him to smirk despite the fact that he was awake and he was all too aware that it was early in the morning. She was trying to get out of bed without waking him, as usual. Such a silly doctor.

"Beloved, where do you think you're going?" Sesshomaru inquired while pulling the pale female to back him.

Kikyo yelped in surprise because she had nearly made her escape, thinking that she would accomplish her goal of leaving the bed without rousing him for once. She had yet to manage such a trick, believing it to be close to impossible, but she continued to try. She braced herself as she gently collided with his bare chest. He held her securely to him and settled back into his pillow, planning to go back to sleep.

"Sessho, release me," she commanded in a soft tone, so it sounded somewhat like a request.

"I think not, woman. It is your day off as it is mine. We're going to lie here and enjoy the day," he declared as if his word was law.

"By sleeping it away?" she inquired in a skeptical tone. She did not see what was so enjoyable about that.

"By sleeping in," he corrected her.

"Lazy dog," she teased him with a smile.

Sesshomaru only made a noise, not bothering to sink to her level for the moment. He just made sure that the arm pressing her to him continued to do so. She made a rather pathetic attempt to resist him, knowing that the only way for her to really get away was for him to voluntarily release her or for her to blow his arm off with her spiritual energy. The latter was not really an option though considered that she liked having her love whole. He glanced down at her, entertained with her actions.

"You make it seem as if you're unhappy lying next to me," he commented in a cool tone.

"I was going to get up and make us breakfast if you must know," she informed him, thinking that might make him reconsider holding her captive.

"If I wished to eat something this morning, I wouldn't have to travel to the kitchen for it," he remarked and that got her to cease pushing away from him.

"Filthy dog," she muttered with a coy smile.

"Do not dare to act so modest now," he playfully admonished her and then his hand wandered, making her yelp as it came into rest lower in her body. She jumped a bit, against him, which caused him to smirk. "You see, you're not so reserved. Don't pretend," he taunted her.

"Stop playing around, Sessho," she reprimanded him now. She even lightly struck him in the chest. The blow did not have enough power to count as anything more than a caress.

"Then why don't you just allow me to sleep? You're acting selfishly."

"I'm being selfish? I was trying to make breakfast for the both of us."

"I told you, if I wanted to eat something this morning, I wouldn't have to travel to the kitchen for it. Now, settle down and let me enjoy the fact that we actually have the same day off," he stated.

Kikyo did not argue that point because it was a good argument. They often did not have a day to themselves because she went to work quite often on the weekends because she wanted to assist in the little clinic where she was employed. Sometimes he got stuck with work because he could not come up with ideas for logos, or mascots, or whatever he was working on, so they did not spend as much time together that they would have liked.

They did make it a point to have lunch together at least twice a week; she had the same setup with her older sister and that was why she could not meet with him more often. They went out to museums and shows every now and then. What they did not do was just lounge around the house as they were doing at the moment.

Sesshomaru was in favor of lying there and doing nothing because that was part of his ritual when he did not have work. He liked sleeping as late as he wanted if he was not required to be somewhere the next day. He wished that she would get into such a habit, but Kikyo was actually creature of movement, much to his annoyance when weekend mornings came around.

He had never assumed that when Kikyo moved into his condo that there would be such irksome side-effects, but there were far more benefits than anything else, so he was pleased that she had moved in a few months ago. It showed that she had faith in their bonds and their relationship only grew closer when she did move in, although they did have to make some adjustments and they were still doing such.

Kikyo decided to settle in next to Sesshomaru, if only to experience what it was like to sleep in. She was not accustomed to just lying in bed and doing nothing, let alone lying in bed, curled up next to the man that she loved deeply. Even when she was in school when she was younger, she did not sleep in on weekends. She found things to do, ways to keep busy. When she was married, she never wanted to be in the same room as her husband whether they were asleep or awake, so she usually attempted to leave his presence as soon as possible. Now, she found herself with a reason to stay in bed.

She rested her head on the noble demon's bare chest and laid her arm across his torso. He breathed a sigh of relief, as if he was only now able to relax because she was not moving. He waited a moment to make sure that she was not going to act up and when he saw that she was done, he closed his eyes to go back to sleep.

Kikyo glanced up at Sesshomaru when she noticed how even his breathing was. She was stunned that he had so easily drifted back to sleep. She would have tried to do the same, but she felt awake, like she did every morning that she woke up. She supposed that she was still in the habit of waking up and being ready to run out of the apartment to avoid having to see her husband, who had been dead for over a year.

She wished that she would work her way out of such a custom because she never desired to run out of the apartment on Sesshomaru. She should be glad to have the chance to just lie next to him, she realized. It was something out of a dream and the fact that she was accustomed to being out of bed the moment that she woke up was ruining it, she believed now that she had the chance to think about it.

She began to lightly trace the demon's body that was underneath her slender fingers. Her hand was near his collar bone, so she ran two fingers over that. She waited to see if he reacted because she did not want to disturb his sleep again, but he did not move. So, she pressed on.

She went to the edge of his collar bone and then moved lower rather than continuing across. She circled the curve of his right pec and noted how smooth his skin was. He had a softness to him that she would never tell him about because he would take offense to it and though it would be quite cute to watch him huff about it, she would rather be kind to him…for the moment anyway.

Her hand traveled further south and made it to his abdomen. She traced the cuts of his abs, first with her fingertips, but then she eventually had her whole palm on his stomach. He twitched a bit in his sleep, but he did not wake up. When she got to his bellybutton, she returned to touching him with her fingertips. She circled his navel with her index and middle fingers as if it was the most fascinating thing that she ever laid eyes on.

She contemplated continuing on her journey downward, but decided against it. She was a bit shyer than Sesshomaru would give her credit for most of the time when it came to nudity and sex; well, nudity in regards to sex anyway. She was not looking to molest him in his sleep and even if he was awake, she would hesitate to touch him any lower than his bellybutton. She was not sure what it would take for her to get over such prudishness, but she knew that she was not over it yet. Sesshomaru thought that he had worked her out of all of her apprehension toward physical intimacy, especially considering some of the things that she did with him, but he would not mind knowing that she was still a bit of a prude.

The dog demon had enjoyed being able to work Kikyo into a mindset where she did not think too much about being nude before him or doing certain things with him. Knowing that she was not totally comfortable yet, merely meant more work for him and he would love every second of it. He was pretty sure that she would enjoy it just as much as he would.

Kikyo now figured that she could try to go back to sleep. She released a long exhale as she closed her eyes. She did drift back to sleep, but when she woke up, Sesshomaru was still sleeping. She expected as much. He would probably sleep his life away if given the chance, she thought.

His little sister claimed that both Sesshomaru and Inuyasha would sleep forever if they could. Kikyo would back that claim from what she knew about both brothers. It was probably the only thing that they had in common aside for similar appearances, but no one would dare say such a thing to the brothers because no one wanted to hear the outraged rant that would surely follow.

The raven-haired doctor was not sure what she should do now that she was awake again. She doubted that she would be able to go to sleep again. She felt completely awake and now she wanted to do something. Maybe she could get some sketches done while Sesshomaru slept. She would like to do some work in her sketchpad because she had not done any drawing for a while, being busy at the clinic. Even when she was home, she usually did not pick up her drawing book. She had forsaken drawing to spend time with her love.

Well, while her love slept, Kikyo thought that it might be a good time to get some sketching in. She started to slowly move away from Sesshomaru, but she did not make it very far. He flexed and pulled her to him. She had look up at him to see if he was still asleep and it appeared that he was. So, she attempted to escape once again, but he held her close and made an irked noise.

"Sessho…" she whispered, checking to see if he was awake.

"Why must you torment me, angel?" he inquired in a low voice of his own.

"I have not done anything to you, beloved," she replied.

"You have awakened me twice now. That is something. Just be still."

"I see, you wish me to lie here all day while you sleep. How selfish," she commented as if she was offended by his behavior.

"It is selfish that you continue to take sleep from me by moving around. Must you be so active on a day where you have nothing to do?" he inquired as if he was insulted by her behavior.

"I would find something to do if you would only release me. I have no problem with you spending your day in bed, but I don't want to be a part of that," she informed him in a civil tone.

"Oh, no?" he asked as if he could not believe it.

"No."

Sesshomaru smirked a bit. "I think I'm going to have to make you change your tone, angel. You should always want to stay in bed with me all day, as I wish to spend all day in bed with you and that's why I'm not going to release you," he explained.

"Sessho," she admonished him and she started moving, as if she was going to get out of the bed, but his grip just tightened on her.

"Don't resist. We can compromise. I want to stay in bed and you want something do, correct?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered.

"Okay then."

Kikyo did not consider what he meant until he shifted her on top of him. She made a little surprised noise as he moved her to where she was on his waist. He put his hands on her hips and now she had a rather clear idea as to what he meant about staying in bed, but having something to do. She was not going to object to the plan.

"Why did you have to go to sleep in that?" he asked, referring to the "pajamas" that she was wearing. She had on one of his plain white dress shirts of all things.

"Don't you always swear that you like to unwrap your presents?" she countered with a small smile.

Sesshomaru smiled a bit. She had such a bad habit of throwing his words back at him. He did not mind peeling her out of clothing, mostly because he liked the way she looked while he did it. She seemed as interested in watching him take her out of her clothes as he seemed in getting her nude. He was not sure why that was, but he enjoyed watching her watch him.

"I suppose I can take the time to slowly unwrap this gift," he decided.

"Oh, please do take your time. We do have all day," she reminded him.

"I wouldn't forget that and I will take my time," he vowed, slowly and gently caressing her arm just to give her an idea of the pace that he planned to go out for the rest of the day.

Sesshomaru sat up enough to place a tender kiss to Kikyo's mouth. She wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the embrace. He then moved his hands to the buttons on the shirt that she was wearing. He broke the kiss and she looked down to see what his hands were doing. He focused his golden eyes on her face while she was watching what his hands were doing.

He took his time unfastening the top button, although his mind was screaming at him to hurry things up. He would not do that, though, not when Kikyo looked so absolutely curious with what he was doing, even though she knew. The look in her mahogany eyes made it seem like he was planning something that she had never seen before and that she thought it was impossible to do. And the expression did not leave her face until he undid all four buttons that she had closed.

Kikyo then turned her gaze back up to her lover's face and he leaned down for a new loving, kiss. He brushed the shirt off of her shoulders and then flung the useless cloth away from them. While the shirt fluttered to the floor, littering the clean room, Sesshomaru's hands began to wander her bare torso. Kikyo's arms went back around his neck.

She caressed his shoulders as he moved to massage her breasts. She hissed into his mouth slightly as he made contact with her flesh. He knew that she would make more noise than that when he began his mission as he started to stroke the underside of her left mound. She cried out a bit more and he decided to add more pressure to get more of a reaction.

"Sesshomaru…" she said his name in an inhaled hiss, breaking their kiss.

He only smirked while moving in to start another kiss and continuing his assault on her body. He remembered when he first found out that Kikyo had a sensitive, little sweet spot underneath both of her breasts. The way she had fallen back that day gave him the idea that she was finding out about the points for the first time too. He had made the remark that he might have broken her from the way she behaved, which she had not found terribly amusing. Those spots were now pretty much permanently marked red.

"You know you're the only one for me, right?" Sesshomaru asked as he pulled away from her slightly.

Kikyo only nodded in affirmation, which was good enough for him as he moved his mouth from hers to travel down her neck and beyond. He meant the words that he spoke. She had to be the only one for him the way that he thought about her every hour of every day. Sometimes, he could not even work because she was on his mind and he had to call her to find out what she was doing with herself. She did not mind the attention.

Kikyo was like him in that regard anyway. She thought about him constantly. On occasion, she would zone out in certain places, just thinking about him, including when she was having lunch with her sister. If she had a break between appointments, she would spend all of her time on the phone with him, even if he had been working when she called.

Their families claimed that they were acting like they were each other's first loves, as if they were teenagers. They would disagree with the latter part, but they did think that the first love argument might hold ground. They had never felt the way they did about each other with any other person on the planet. They hoped that the feeling never waned and that their love would outlast the universe itself.

Sesshomaru made his way down past Kikyo's neck and began to place cotton-soft kisses to her chest. He never spent too much time at her neck because he did not want to leave a mark on her pale flesh that might be seen. She was a respected doctor, after all, and he did not want anyone to develop a negative image of his beloved just because of a few affectionate bites from him. Skin that no one would ever see was fair game, though.

Kikyo hissed again as his hands and mouth felt like they were everywhere at once, like he had more than one set. His mouth traveled to her right breast while his hand continued to keep the other company. He teased her a bit by tracing the natural pink bull's-eye on her flesh, trying to get her to make a move. He knew that if he taunted her enough, she would do just what he wanted her to do and she did. She moved her hand from his shoulders to the back of his head and pressed him closer to her, which caused him to smirk before obliging her silent command of more.

In the past, she would have requested or even begged him to not tease her. He did not want her words. He wanted her actions. He desired to know that she was not scared or nervous to do things around him that might seem a bit improper. If she wanted more, she had a right to demand it or move him to where she wanted, as he would do with her if necessary.

He applied pressure with his mouth around the special gem in its care and then added to things by gently rubbing her sweet spot. Kikyo cried out again a little louder than before and held him tighter, so he went further with more suction from his mouth and more fervent caressing with both of his hands. Kikyo fell backwards as if she was diving into a pool, breaking their delicious, precious contact. He looked down at her as she realized what happened.

"Now, how are we supposed to be active if you're going to lie down on the job?" he taunted her.

Kikyo did not respond as she was too busy trying to catch her breath. She knew that those touches were coming, yet they always managed to send her into a pleasure overload when they arrived. She did not have much time to contemplate that matter because Sesshomaru was not looking to give her time to recover. He lifted her back up to where she was sitting on top of him and then he settled back against his pillows.

"Maybe it would be safer for you if you were the one doing everything," he suggested.

"Really?" she asked skeptically. It was a rare day indeed when he was not looking to touch her in every lewd and licentious way that came to mind.

"You're the one that wants something to do. I was just looking to sleep in, remember?" he pointed out.

Kikyo nodded. So, she was expected to touch him? She was not even sure where to begin. She leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on his mouth, which he accepted. Her small hands lightly roamed his chest like feathers at their own leisure. They ended up stopping at his stomach, which she knew he enjoyed having caressed, even though he tried to pretend otherwise. He thought that liking to have his stomach rubbed seemed too close to being a canine than he liked. Still, she stroked his abdomen and got a soft whimper out of him that let her know he was pleased with what she was doing.

Her hand went lower without permission from her brain and came into contact with the waistband of his boxers. She wondered if he noticed and looked into his eyes. His gaze told her that he had noticed and urged her to continue on. She gave him a puzzled look in response.

"Go ahead if you want to," he told her in a gentle tone that was reserved just for her.

She nodded and proceeded onward because she was curious. As much as he touched her below the waist, she had always been timid about doing the same to him. It seemed inappropriate for one thing and for another thing, she considered that she might actually hurt him because it was such unfamiliar territory. She kept eye contact with him as she reached somewhat unknown land.

He exhaled a bit as she touched him so lightly that it might as well been a small breeze caressing him. He gave her a hard look, letting her know that she could and should do more than that. She obeyed, still curious as to what she was doing. She ran her fingertips up and down the length of him, earning a frustrated growl and a pleading look. She countered with a confused look; what more did he want from her?

"Don't be frightened," he informed her. "You know there's nothing wrong with what you're doing," he added in case her modesty was getting the better of her passion.

He was right, she reminded herself. She moved more confidently now, remembering that he touched her down there all of the time. She continued to stare at him, still appearing nervous, but he was paying less and less attention as time pressed on. She eventually wrapped her hand around him and he started moving with her. And then, he suddenly stopped her.

"Sessho, what are you doing?" she asked as he grabbed her hand. She wondered if she had done something wrong. She knew that she should not have bothered with trying, she scolded herself. She had no business there.

"This is driving me mad. I've got to have you right now," he answered with a slight pant.

"What?" she inquired as if she did not understand. She had expected him to tell that he just wanted her to stop what she was doing because it was irksome or something to that effect.

"Right now," he repeated in a serious tone.

Kikyo did not say anything to that and he took care of the two cloth barriers between them. He impatiently just cut her panties from her with his claws because he did not want her to move from where she was; it was not the first time that he had done such a thing and they both doubted that it would be the last. He gripped her hips and gritted his teeth as she repositioned herself on him.

They both had to release an exhale before anything else, expressing the sheer delicious feeling coursing through both of them. They looked at each other, seeing and touching the other's soul because of their union. She moved first, rolling her hips, and he joined in, moving in time with her. Before long, they were both making noises, mewing sounds and moans from her while he grunted and growled. Hands urgently wandered pale, sweat-covered bodies while names occasionally escaped from mouths that hardly realized that they were speaking.

As they drew closer to the finish, Kikyo bit her lip so badly that she drew blood. Sesshomaru had to remove his hands from her person or he would have clawed her back deeply. She fell onto his chest and placed an affectionate kiss to his torso. He wrapped his arms around her, as if saying that he would never let her go, which she appreciated. They both silently promised to always be there for each other.

"Was that enough activity for this morning or are you still looking for something to do?" he inquired once he caught his breath. He doubted that anyone would ever believe him if he told them that petite, little Kikyo could wear him out if given enough encouragement.

"I don't know. Are you still planning to sleep the day away?" she countered, caressing his sides since that was where her hands had taken up residency for the moment. She licked the small crimson stream that was coming from her injured lip.

"How can I sleep with you behaving the way that you are?" he teased.

"Oh, yes, blame me," she commented dryly.

He only smiled; she was the only person that he smiled for. How could he even think of sleep if she was lying before him bare and ready to allow him to touch her soul again and again? Being with her in any way was the very definition of paradise; she would say the same of him. The more time that they spend with each other, they were starting to believe that love did not even cover what they felt when they were together.

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Next time: well, there was the romance. Let's get into some drama when Sesshomaru is asked to chaperon around a demon princess visiting from overseas.


	2. Gathering clouds

I don't own these characters.

2: Gathering clouds

Sesshomaru held Kikyo loosely in their sleep. She was resting on top of him, so he figured that he did not have to hold her too tightly when they had fallen asleep. Besides, he did not want to hurt her ribs since she was pressed on top of his chest.

They had had a day that Sesshomaru had been wishing would take place for the longest. They had stayed in bed on their day off and made love through out the day. They had gotten up a couple of times to stretch, use the bathroom, and eat, but they mostly remained in bed, exploring and discovering new items about each other. It had been quite the fascinating day.

At one point in the day, Kikyo actually cried. The tears had spilled for a few seconds and she could not control herself. When asked about her tears, she had no explanation, except that she felt so incredibly loved and it was an outstanding emotion. He had smiled a bit at her words and reached out a hand to dry her tears with a gentle sweep of his index finger.

Every couple of hours, Kikyo also made confessions of deep love for the dog demon. He believed her, even though she was usually shouting such things while in the throngs of passion. Many of those admissions had been done loudly and forcefully. Once, she even growled to him that she loved him more than any woman ever would. He did not doubt her in that because of the conviction in her voice.

She was not alone in odd behavior that day. Sesshomaru had done some strange things too, like nuzzling her and whispering all of the affections that he held for her, his wonderful, little angel. He had been so into being inside of her that he had to tell her that it was like they were touching souls; he had never said such a thing before, even though he thought it every now and then. He was not one for speaking his emotions, even when it came to his angel, but that day had been different.

More than once, he left everything involved in their activity to Kikyo. She did not disappoint, taking things right where he desired them to be. It was almost as if she could read his mind, he always thought and it was something that he appreciated about her. He even told her that at some point in the day; he could not remember when exactly.

A few times, he did act out, though. He left a dark scarlet mark on her neck, even though he always attempted to not mark up places on her body that someone might see. She had not seen the mark yet, so he had not been reprimanded for doing such a thing. Also, during a rather vigorous set, he accidentally cut into her body, trying to grip her hips and rear. The scratches were luckily not deep at all and did not halt their day. He had apologized almost a dozen times for marring her lovely form, even though she accepted the first apology and understood that it was an accident.

Through out most of the day, they had not talk to each other much aside for commenting on their emotions every now and then. Most of their communications were done through eye contact that day. They read each other better than they would have been able to read a children's book and that was why they had not opened their mouths to speak much of the time.

Their eyes told them things that they were not ready to say to each other, things that they felt unnecessary to voice, and things that words would have never properly explain. Their eyes informed them if things should continue or halt or go at a different pace. Most of all, their eyes always told them that they were important to each other. So, to them, eye contact was always important.

They had fallen asleep that night totally exhausted. It had felt like a chore to Sesshomaru just to pull a cover over them when they decided to call it a night. Kikyo had barely been able to lift her head to kiss him goodnight. He had wanted to put in a request that they do the same thing tomorrow, but she was asleep right after giving him the kiss and he was asleep seconds after he realized that she was out.

In the morning, the couple was taken from their sleep by the usual things. Kikyo had woken up and was looking to get out of bed. Her movement caused Sesshomaru to groan and he tightened his grip on her to get her to stop moving.

"Beloved," he muttered.

"I'm sorry, Sessho. I didn't mean to wake you," she apologized.

"I know. Just relax, angel. We don't have anywhere to be this morning," he pointed out.

"Sessho, according to the clock, it's noon," she informed him. He was not in a position to see the time because his head was buried in the pillow that it was resting on.

"Noon?" he echoed in disbelief.

"Yes, noon."

"What time are you leaving?" he asked curiously. He knew that she had plans to go to the clinic sometime in the afternoon, but he was not sure of the time exactly. He was not even sure why she was going at the moment. His mind was much too cloudy thanks to yesterday.

"I don't know now. I have to meet my sister at three," she answered, reaching up to rub the sleep from her eye.

"Where are you meeting her?"

"She's going to drive to the center."

"And how are you going to get there?" he asked.

"Like I get anywhere," she answered.

"No," he objected.

She either walked or took public transportation when she went somewhere. He did not understand why she did not buy a car. She could drive and she had the money and even if she did not have the money, he did. He would have brought her a car that day, but he was not sure if she would use it.

"What do you have against the bus and train?" she inquired.

"Aside for the smell?" he countered. He hated the way that she smelled when she got off of public transportation, especially if the bus or train was crowded.

"Okay, aside for the smell," she would concede that point to him. She understood that his nose was extra-sensitive, so she could see how the smell might bother him.

"It's dangerous. All sorts of unsavory characters ride on the bus and train. Something could happen to you," he argued. That was the reason why he hated when their little sisters ran around on public transportation. He could not wait for them to be old enough to drive because he was going to make sure that they did just that.

"You worry about me much too much, dearest," she stated.

Sesshomaru only made a tense face. He worried about her too much? Of course he did. She was his angel and he did not want anything terrible to happen to her. There was also the fact that she did not seem to worry about herself enough. She always thought about others; she was at the bottom of her list of individuals that she cared about it seemed.

"I'll drive you to the center," the dog demon told her.

"You mean you're actually going to get out of bed for me on your day off?" she teased him, which earned her a frown from the nobleman.

"Keep it up and neither of us will be getting out of this bed," he seemed to threaten her.

"I have to get out of bed. I can't play with you all day today," she informed him, still in a bit of a teasing tone.

He only snorted, as if he was offended and angry. He reached up to caress her shoulder, just to savor the moment. He would like to just be able to stay in bed again, but that was pressing his luck, especially with the way Kikyo liked to move around.

"I'm going to go take a shower," she announced to him, which was a code for him to release her, so she could get up.

"What makes you think you're going to do that?" he inquired.

She gave him a stern look and he let her go; it would seem that playtime was over. She eased out of bed and shivered because the air around the room was cooler than the musky coat that had covered her and Sesshomaru in the bed. She dashed off for the bathroom, hoping to get into some hot water and erase the chill on her body now.

The dog demon watched her run off into the bathroom that was in the bedroom and then he lay back once she closed the door. He sighed and tried to figure out if he should get up now or just relax for a moment. He was distracted from that thought as his phone began to ring. He reached over on the nightstand where the phone was and glanced at the clock to see that it was noon. Wow, he could hardly believe that they had slept clear through the morning.

"Yes?" Sesshomaru answered his phone and then got a real wakeup call. It was his father that wanted to speak with him.

Sesshomaru listened as his father informed him that he needed to come to the house and they needed to talk sometime that day. Sesshomaru did not argue with that. At least the order was not interrupting the flow of his day and it was open ended. He would have wanted to tear his father's throat out had he made the call yesterday. Well, now he supposed that he needed to get up and start getting ready.

He got up and joined Kikyo in the shower. She was not surprised by the move, even though she did not know that he had been called by his father. They did enjoy the closeness in the shower, though they did not do anything aside for bathe. They washed each other with gentle hands and then exited the shower to get dressed.

They put on their clothes. Kikyo combed her hair and then she combed Sesshomaru's hair for him. He would have done it himself, but she enjoyed grooming him and getting to feel his silky straight sliver hair in her hands. She always thought that touching his mane had to be like running her fingers through moon beams.

It was during the grooming session that Kikyo noticed the mark that her lover left on her neck. She reprimanded Sesshomaru thoroughly for putting such an obvious scarlet blotch on her pale flesh. He took the admonishment because he had been expecting it and he knew that he deserved it, if only a little bit. He did assist her in covering the mark up with makeup, acting as a test subject to tell her if she was covering it up well.

Once they were presentable by their high standards, they left the bedroom and went to the kitchen for some breakfast. Sesshomaru made coffee for both of them while Kikyo made bagels. They did not say anything to each other, mostly just glancing at each other as they tended to do with breakfast.

They left sometime after one and walked down to Sesshomaru's car. He drove her to the medical center that she worked and he parked the car. They sat there for a while, another habit that they. He reached over and caressed her cheek while she turned to face him.

"We should go out tonight," Sesshomaru commented.

"Where do you want to go?" Kikyo asked curiously.

"A new restaurant opened up and it's supposed to be exquisite. We should try it while we have the time."

"You make a point. I would like to go out with you, Sessho, but you have to be a gentleman," she teased him.

"I am always a gentleman, madam," he proclaimed.

Kikyo gave him a skeptical look, which earned her a kiss of all things. He thought that her expression was adorable and that was why he had kissed her. He was one of the few people in life that encouraged her to behave inappropriately, which would surprise people that knew him of course. The whole world swore that Sesshomaru was the very meaning of proper, after all.

"We will go out, angel. What time and where should I pick you up?" he inquired.

"Anytime that is good for you. Call me before hand, even though I'll probably be home by the time you want to have dinner," she answered.

"You be sure to have your busybody older sister drive you home," he ordered.

"Don't call my sister a busybody," she scolded him. He believed that Midoriko was a busybody because it seemed like everyday she was on the phone with Kikyo wanting to know what he was doing with his beloved. Midoriko called it "checking on" her little sister while he called it plain irksome.

"It's what she is. Make her drive you home. If I come in and smell even the hint of a bus ride on you, it's not going to be a fun evening," he commented.

She only gave him a coy look, which he did not like much. To him, it meant that she was going to more than likely take public transportation home just to annoy him. He had created the playful monster that she had become, he reminded himself. But, it was good that she was playful because it showed that she was comfortable with him, more so than anyone else on the planet.

"If you need anything, call me on my cell. I've got to go see my father," the dog demon informed her.

That was news to Kikyo. "Why?" she asked curiously.

"I don't know. He never makes it a point to tell me."

"I see where you get your attitude from," she commented with a small smile. She often told him that he was just like his father and he never seemed to know whether he should be proud or insulted by her words.

Sesshomaru rolled his golden eyes. "Keep talking and you'll be having dinner alone," he threatened her.

"Horrible dog," she stated, still smiling.

"Seriously, if you need anything," he started to say, but she cut him off.

"I'll call you, beloved. You know I will. Now, am I free to go?"

"Yes, angel," he replied.

"Thank you," she said rather sincerely.

He leaned over and kissed her again. She accepted and returned the show of affection. They were reluctant to pull away, but she did have to go and he did have to go too. They had to remind themselves that they were going to see each other again that night, so it was all right to let the other go.

"Later, beloved," she whispered to him as she finally opened the car door to exit the vehicle.

"Take care, angel," he said.

Kikyo offered him one last gentle smile before going off into the medical center. He watched her disappear into the building before pulling out of the parking lot. He considered that he might go run a few errands before he went to see what his father wanted. He did call his father's home to let the older demon know that he was going to be there in a couple of hours only to find out that his father was not home anyway. So, he concluded that it was all right for him to go run some errands before going home.

--------------

Midoriko arrived at Kikyo's work site and noticed a group of six people hanging out outside of the medical center. How tacky, she thought as she approached the building, because they were hanging around the clinic as if it was a mall. And then it got worse because she walked by the group, several of the guys began making suggestive noises at her. One of them then made the mistake of calling her Kikyo, which just disgusted her more. Great, she thought sarcastically; those idiots actually knew her little sister.

Midoriko entered the medical center and looked around for her little sister, but Kikyo was not around. She went to the front desk where everyone was familiar with her and her reason for being there. They did not know what to tell her about her usually prompt little sister, except that she might have gotten suckered in to helping around the clinic when she had only come in to do some paperwork. Midoriko could see that happening and decided to go grab her sister out of her office, or whatever other office the younger female might happen to be lost in. She did not make it too far because she had a voice behind her calling out for Kikyo, so she thought that Kikyo might be behind her.

Midoriko turned and happened to be facing an ebony-haired male. From the look on his face and the "oops" that escaped his lips, she could guess that he thought she was Kikyo and was calling out for her rather than actually calling her little sister. Upon closer inspection and from a front view, he had realized his mistake sooner than most people.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else," he told her with a sheepish smile on his face.

"That's quite all right. I get that all the time," she replied.

"Oh?" he said in a stunned tone.

"Yes, I do," she assured him.

"You mean that you get mistaken for people that you're not all the time?" he inquired. He doubted that she could get mistaken for the same person all of the time.

"No, I get mistake for Kikyo all of the time," she answered. She supposed that it could be worse. Kikyo got mistaken for her and their cousin a great deal of the time because Kikyo was in between both of them age-wise and it would seem that she could be either one of them depending on who the person making the mistake wanted to see.

"How is that possible?" he asked in a confused tone.

"Big sister," Kikyo said as she walked up the hall and noticed Midoriko.

The older sibling turned her attention down the corridor and watched her younger sister approach. The sisters embraced each other and that sort of cleared the mystery up for the male in their company. He noted that the family resemblance was beyond strong. They looked almost like the same person.

"Sister, I see you've met Doctor Suikotsu," Kikyo said.

"I wouldn't call it met," Midoriko replied.

"More like making a fool out of myself by calling her you," the male explained with an embarrassed expression gracing his strong jaw.

"Oh, it's a common mistake," Kikyo tried to assure him. He did smile.

"Still, I'm very sorry," he apologized in a very polite manner.

"It's all right. I'm Midoriko. This way, if you see me again, you can take a second guess," the elder sister remarked.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said and then he turned his attention to Kikyo. "Are you on your way out?" he inquired.

"Yes, I have a lunch date with my sister that I need to fulfill and I've finished up my other things. Good luck to you since it's so busy around here today," Kikyo said to him.

He laughed a bit and the sisters bid him farewell. He returned that with his own parting words. The sisters then walked toward the exit of the building. Midoriko did glance back at the male doctor and then turned her attention to Kikyo.

"Don't say anything," the younger sister said as they exited the building and then she sighed as they walked by the same group that had behaved so wolfishly with Midoriko.

"Hey, Kikyo," one of the guys in the group said. He was a little thing with waist long ebony hair done in a braid. "When are you going to give Suikotsu the time that he deserves?" he inquired quite bluntly.

Kikyo ignored him and Midoriko followed her lead while they continued on walking. The group did not let up until the sisters were in Midoriko's car. Kikyo sighed as soon as she was in the vehicle.

"I can see why you wouldn't want me to say anything if those were the good doctor's friends," Midoriko commented.

"He is the only doctor I have ever met that was also in a gang," Kikyo stated.

"It's a gang?"

"Yes, a seven man gang. He is a nice guy and everything, but I'm happily in love and wouldn't give him the time of day with a gun to my head," the younger sister replied soundly, knowing that Midoriko had probably had it in her head that Kikyo should drop Sesshomaru and give Suikotsu a chance.

Suikotsu's friends made those arguments too. His friends tended to speak up about his interest in Kikyo more than the doctor did. He usually just acted very kind toward her, even though he was like that to everyone else. He just paid her a lot of attention, offering help, even when she did not need it and things such as that. To her, he was a desirable male, but she was in love with Sesshomaru and nothing would change that to get her to even consider dating Suikotsu.

"You could have a handsome doctor, yet you pick that arrogant dog?" Midoriko said as if she did not believe it.

"If you like Suikotsu so much, why don't you pursue him?"

Midoriko stiffened a bit at the suggestion. "He obviously likes you," she replied. As if she would even think about letting someone in a gang into her life.

"Yes, but we look very much alike and are very similar. Surely, he could like you. Besides, you never date, sister."

"And I won't start with a man being pawned off to me by my younger sister," the lawyer replied.

Kikyo only smiled a bit. She did think that it was time for Midoriko to start dating. Kaede was now old enough to look after herself for the most part; at least for a short period of time. Besides, Kikyo was now stable, so she had no problem with sharing the responsibility in looking after and rising their baby sister. It was time for Midoriko to get out there and possibly find the love of her life. She did not have any excuses left in Kikyo's opinion and she left that be known on the ride to the café that they were going to.

Midoriko listened to her younger sister and countered the argument with one of her own. Yes, their baby sister was old enough to look after herself and yes, Kikyo was able to share the responsibility of rising Kaede, but Midoriko also had her career to worry about now. Kikyo only sighed as soon as she was rebuffed with such a weak argument in her opinion.

--------------

Sesshomaru waited for his father in the older demon's office. He had not been there too long before his father entered and took a seat. They stared at each other for a moment before the older demon spoke.

"How's Kikyo?" his father inquired.

"Fine," Sesshomaru answered automatically more than anything else. He knew that his father actually liked Kikyo and was interested in how she was. In Inuyasha's words their father liked to check up on the couple "to make sure that Sesshomaru did not blow it."

"That's good. You make sure she stays that way."

Sesshomaru did not react to that order. "Why did you call me here, Father?" he inquired to get to the subject that they needed to talk about. He would handle his woman with all the care and love that an angel deserved and he did not need anyone telling him how to do that.

"For a task."

"I thought as much," the younger demon commented.

"A friend of mine is sending her daughter to the city to handle some business. You are to show her daughter around."

Sesshomaru tried his best to keep his cool to the order, but it was rather difficult. He ended up frowning because of the command, which did not go unnoticed by his father. His father just did not say anything.

"You want me to show a woman around the city?" Sesshomaru inquired with forced control. His relationship with Kikyo was finally steady and proper and his father was trying to get him to take a woman around the town. Was his father mad?

"Yes, Princess Abi. Her mother is the head of a clan of bird demons," his father informed him.

"I know," Sesshomaru said in a clipped tone. Of course he knew that considering the fact that he used to have to tag along with his father when he was younger on all sorts of business trips.

"You will show Abi around for as long as she is in the area," his father commanded.

"Do you seek to ruin my relationship?" Sesshomaru inquired because that was what it seemed like to him.

"Kikyo is a level-headed woman and as long as you don't do anything foolish, she should understand," his father replied.

Sesshomaru only scowled. Kikyo was a level-headed woman that he had hurt in the past and he knew that he had to be careful around her. He doubted that she would take it well if he were to tell her that he was going to be escorting a woman around the city. So, really, was his father mad?

"Don't give me that look either. You're going to do it, so explain to Kikyo that it means nothing and make sure that it does mean nothing," his father informed him.

"It will mean nothing," Sesshomaru insisted, now on the defensive. As if he would give a damn about any other female that was not Kikyo, especially Abi.

"Make sure it does," his father repeated, knowing that despite how perfect Sesshomaru claimed to be, he was prone to stupid mistakes. It seemed to be a habit with his sons to screw up good things with wonderful women. It was a good thing that they had such kindhearted and understanding ladies in their lives or they would stay in misery. He hoped that Sesshomaru did not go out and prove that he was far from perfect when Abi arrived, although he doubted that Sesshomaru would do anything with the princess that would get him into trouble with Kikyo. If anything, Sesshomaru would do something to get in trouble with him.

--------------

Next time: a brief look at Inuyasha and Kagome arguing before Sesshomaru informs Kikyo that he has to escort a woman around the city for an undetermined amount of time.


	3. Understanding

I don't own these characters.

3: Understanding

Sesshomaru sighed as he thought about what his father wanted him to do. He was going to have to act as an escort for a demon princess named Abi. He thought that such a thing put him in an unfair and compromising position and it was wrong of his father to tell him to be the one to show the female around. But, he knew that he was the logical choice.

Still, he was forever on thin ice with his beloved and he did not need anything to stress the floor beneath him, lest he fall threw. He knew that because of what he had done to Kikyo in the past. He had showed little trust in her, accused her of being with his brother and of being a whore, and to top everything off, he had even threatened her life. Now, he had apologized for his actions and he was fairly certain that she had forgiven him, but he could not forgive himself. He had treated his angel so poorly and he did not want to give her any excuse to consider that he might behave so poorly ever again.

He doubted that his woman was going to sit by and understand that his father wanted him to show around a demon princess. He did not care how level-headed she was, like his father claimed and seemed to think that made everything all right. Kikyo was a woman and by that, he was well aware that he was going to earn all kinds of distrustful looks from her just as soon as he laid the down the news. He did not even want to have to deal with the expressions that he was so certain that she was going to cast him.

He supposed that if he explained everything specifically, Kikyo should not be so upset with him. Perhaps she would turn her wrath toward his father since it was the older demon that was forcing the task onto Sesshomaru. He had nothing to do with the decision, after all. Nothing beyond the fact that he was more competent than his little brother and he figured that Abi would appreciate his company more than the hanyou's presence. It would seem that Inuyasha could read his brother's thoughts because as soon as the half-demon entered his mind, his loud mouth echoed through the house.

"Damn it, why are you getting all huffy with me?" Inuyasha practically hollered. The question implied that he had come in with his woman.

Sesshomaru rose from his seat in his father's office; he had been sitting in there long after his father had left the room. He decided to go see what new train wreck his little brother was working on with Kagome. They were like a nine-car accident on the freeway; a passerby just had to go out of his way to see it, especially since he was not in it. Not that Sesshomaru ever thought that he and his beloved would ever be in any situation or argument like Inuyasha and Kagome usually were.

"Why do you always have to act like a maniac?" Kagome shot back to Inuyasha as she and the half-breed entered the house from outside.

"I wasn't acting like a maniac! I don't like him touching you like that and you need to stop fucking encouraging him!" Inuyasha barked.

"I wasn't encouraging him and you didn't have to hit him. He's our friend," she argued.

"That bastard ain't no friend of mine and I don't like you being around him," Inuyasha declared bluntly.

"Well, too bad! You need to grow up. This isn't elementary school, you know?"

"No shit! Which is way I hit that smelly bastard because I know what's on his mind, so you need to stop acting like he just wants to be your fucking friend," the hanyou snorted.

"You're being immature. You know I'm not going to do anything with him. He's just my friend and that's all," she stated.

"Obviously, I need to buy you a fucking dictionary for you to look up what the hell a friend is. A dude that wants to get in your skirt isn't a friend. He's a fucking dead man as long as I'm around," he proclaimed.

"Oh, yeah, that's real mature," she countered sarcastically.

"Just stay away from him."

"No!"

Inuyasha reeled back at that response as if she had shot him. He then regained his composure. "What the fuck do you mean 'no'? You stay away from that bastard," he commanded.

"You can't tell me who my friends are! I'm so sick of you!" she screamed and she marched off deeper into the house, going toward his room.

"Yeah, well, I'm sick of you too!" he hollered at her back. She did not turn around and he turned his head away from the sight of her as if just looking at her back was something that was offensive to him. He then decided to acknowledge his audience. "What the hell are you doing here?" he demanded to know.

"Obviously getting cheap thrills watching you and your woman bark at each other like ridiculous children once again," Sesshomaru answered in a dispassionate tone.

"Shut up," the younger brother replied gruffly.

"What did you do now?" Sesshomaru asked, almost as if he was interested. He just liked knowing how foolish his brother could be when it came to having a girlfriend. Sometimes he thought that Kagome had to be some kind of saint to put up with his brother; or some kind of masochist, he occasionally corrected himself.

"I punched the shit out of this fucking wolf bastard that was hitting on her. The bastard was calling her his woman and shit. The fuck was I supposed to do?" Inuyasha huffed. He honestly felt like he had done the right thing because it would keep that filthy wolf from hitting on his girl anymore.

"She's upset with you for hitting a demon that was hitting on her?" the taller male inquired in a slightly puzzled tone. He was not following why the girl was angry with his brother. It would seem that she was the one being irrational for once. He was not surprised by that because Kagome seemed rather flighty to him more often than not and he was just glad that Kikyo was not like her.

"Hell, yeah! Tell me, what the fuck was I supposed to do? The bastard is calling her his woman right in front of me and knows she don't like him anyway. So, what the hell?" Inuyasha demanded to know. As far as he was concerned, he was sticking up for him and for his girlfriend.

Sesshomaru shrugged. "I honestly don't have an answer for you on that one, little brother," he admitted.

As far as Sesshomaru was concerned, his little brother had done the proper thing. If some male, it did not even have to be a demon, was hitting on Kikyo right in front of Sesshomaru, he would have reacted somewhat similar to his brother. He would first try to intimidate the male with his presence and if that did not work, he would have no qualms with putting his knuckles on such a bold foe. He considered that Inuyasha might have hit the demon before giving everything enough time to play out.

"Well, when did you hit him?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"After the prick wouldn't leave when I ordered him to. He just kept hitting on her, so I punched the asshole in the mouth and told him that he needed to shut the fuck up," Inuyasha answered, his anger still evident in his voice. He was getting more pissed off just talking about it because of how disrespectful that disgusting wolf was and the fact that he was getting admonished for defending Kagome's honor.

The elder brother nodded to show that he understood. It truly seemed logical enough to him, so he did not comprehend why the half-demon was being hollered at by his girl. He could not believe that he actually agreed with his little brother's actions. It had to be a first.

"Why did she come here if she's so upset with you?" the full demon inquired. He figured that if she was as angry as she seemed, over nothing he might add, that she might want to go home rather than to Inuyasha's house.

"She left a fucking school book or some shit here, so I got to get yelled out on the way here and on the way to when I have to take her home. It's going to be so much fucking fun," Inuyasha replied in a sarcastic tone. He was going to dread the ride back to her house.

"What is she so upset about?" Sesshomaru more wondered out loud than asked his brother.

"Hell if I know. Keeps bitching at me for hitting her 'friend.' Tried to tell her that he ain't no friend, but does she listen to me? No," Inuyasha huffed.

"Well, if she did, it would make her the only one," the older male commented.

Inuyasha snorted and was about to get to work on tearing his brother a new one verbally, but Kagome returned it. It would seem that he was going to be too busy getting screamed on to find the time to tell his brother where to go and what to do once he got there. Kagome grabbed him by a dog ear and practically dragged him, hollering in pain, out of the house.

"Why the hell are you acting like this?" Inuyasha demanded to know as he followed his girlfriend out of the house.

Sesshomaru sighed as the young couple exited the mansion. No matter what, he knew for a fact that he and Kikyo would never go through what those two did. After all, he did not do as many idiotic things as his brother did and Kikyo certainly did not have her cousin's short temper. He doubted that Kikyo would get so worked up over something that seemed like the logical thing to do, as far as a demon was concerned anyway, like Kagome was. It was so odd that Inuyasha was actually being the rational one in that pair for once, he thought.

Thinking of Kikyo, Sesshomaru decided to take his leave. He considered that with the news that he was carrying, he might want something to soften that blow. Besides, it would be satisfying to shower his beloved with gifts. When was the last time he had gotten her something that shined with almost as much radiance as his woman, after all? He concluded that it had been too long, even though it had been only a couple of months ago when he last brought her a bracelet made of white gold.

Sesshomaru only brought Kikyo jewelry that was silver, white gold, or platinum because she often expressed such delight with his hair color. One of her favorite things to do when sitting with him was to comb or brush or even braid his hair; she, of course, never left the braids in. So, he thought that it was clever to buy her charms that were close to his hair color and she always appreciated it. With that decided, he went out to purchase gifts for her to reinforce that he loved her and always would.

--------------

Kikyo was dressed to go out with Sesshomaru since he had suggested that they got out for dinner. She was wearing her usual clothing, but she had changed out of the attire that she had gone to work in. She also put on some perfume, which was subtle to not bother her lover's nose. She put on just a hint of lipstick and waited quietly for him to come home.

She pulled out her sketchbook and decided to pay some attention to her neglected work until her prince returned. She worked with in ink because a blue ballpoint pen was close by. She did some work of her right hand; she almost always drew her right hand when she was practicing. She was just attempting to strengthen her left hand until she was comfortable with drawing using the attachment on portraits.

After sometime spent drawing, she turned her attention to the door. She heard a key in the lock, signaling that her beloved was home, even though she sensed him about the time that he got off the elevator. He entered the apartment and softly shut the door.

Kikyo raised a curious ebony eyebrow as she noticed a white box in her lover's arm. She wondered what he was carrying. She figured that she would give him a moment to get in the apartment before inquiring about what might be a trivial package.

Sesshomaru could feel her mahogany eyes watching, almost as if he was a painting that intrigued her. He smirked to himself. He liked when she watched him, although he preferred to do the watching. He stalked her more like a predator and she often felt his gaze on her better than he did when the roles were reserved.

He put the white box down on the counter top that wrapped around the kitchen. He then walked into the living room, where Kikyo was seated. He leaned down to her and greeted her with a light kiss on the mouth.

"Have you been waiting long for me?" he inquired.

"No, not really. How was your meeting with your father?" she countered.

Sesshomaru only sighed, which was a reaction that she was accustomed to. She closed her art book and reached out for the demon, taking his arm. She pulled herself up to the point where she had her knees digging into the couch. He did not so much as glance down at the cushions.

"I'm sure he didn't mean to upset you," she said in a gentle tone.

"I'm sure he did. It's a habit of his. Are you ready for dinner?"

"Of course, but first I want to know what's in that box, as it does look suspiciously like a cake box," she commented.

"Funny that you should say the box looks like a cake box. I wonder what it might hold," he said with a small smirk.

Kikyo only smiled. She got up and moved from one side of the sofa to the other, joining her lover. They then both went to the waiting box and Sesshomaru cut the strings around it with his talons. She opened the top of the box and smiled again.

"You, sir, are looking to spoil me," she remarked.

"You deserve it," he replied while leaning down to kiss her.

The demon had purchased Kikyo's favorite cake from her favorite bakery while he was out. There was, of course, calamities when having cake in their apartment. Rin and Kaede came and went as they pleased, both packing keys to the apartment, and they had no shame in eating whatever was in the refrigerator. They had the same soft spot for yellow cake as Kikyo did and had no problems with eating more than one piece in a sitting like Kikyo did.

"How do you figure I deserve cake?" she asked, just to be a little teasing.

"Because the perfect woman deserves everything perfection brings her. Now, allow me to treat you to a dazing dinner," he replied while putting his arms around her waist. He pulled her to him and kissed her with heat on the mouth. She did not resist him and returned the affection.

When the couple broke a part, Kikyo secured the cake in the refrigerator and hoped that their sisters did not come by while they were out. She just wanted a slice of the cake before they devoured it; they had been known to eat whole cakes alone if given enough time and she would not get a piece. Once the cake was put away, Sesshomaru led his beloved out of the apartment for them to go on their date.

--------------

Sesshomaru and Kikyo had had a pleasant dinner, as they always did when they had a meal together. The couple spoke a bit about their days, but did not get into anything too specific. Sesshomaru did have to share his anecdote about what his brother went through with her cousin.

"I was told of what happened. Kagome called me, thinking that I would understand," Kikyo informed him.

The dog demon showed some interest by slightly arching an eyebrow. His lover noticed the movement and knew what it meant. She supposed that she should add to what she had just said.

"I will admit…I did not understand much of it," she continued on almost as if she was amused. "I suppose the fact that Inuyasha should have just walked away could be taken into consideration, but I don't understand why they have made such a big argument out of the matter."

"I think Inuyasha did the right thing," he commented. He was stunned that his brain had allowed his mouth to say such a thing. Hell, he was surprised that his mouth could say such a thing. The fact that he agreed with Inuyasha had to be an omen of some kind, he thought.

"I know you would. You probably would have done the same thing because you're a demon," she replied, as if that was an insult. She was merely teasing him. He was the only person in existence that she would even think to tease and she enjoyed that he brought out such a side of her.

"I don't expect you to put me in such a situation," he stated plainly.

Kikyo nodded. "I would try my best not to," she admitted, which was why she had not said anything to him about her coworker that had a crush on her or his friends that hung outside of medical center and verbally harassed her.

"As I figured. I have something for you," he softly announced while going into his pocket.

She looked slightly surprised by that. Two gifts in one evening? He had only done that once before; it happened when his father sent him overseas on very short notice, so she could not accompany him. They had been apart for a week and confessed to each other almost everyday over the phone how they disliked the distance between them; no one else on the planet would have known that from the demeanors that the two carried in public. They had told each other that being apart was like missing all of their organs; they just were not whole when they were not together.

The platinum-haired male pulled out a small black jewelry box. He looked down at the tiny package for a moment before passing it over to his lover. Kikyo accepted the gift, but she did not open it. She looked at Sesshomaru with sorrow in her chocolate eyes; it would have been hard for most people to see, but, of course, he knew her well.

"What's wrong, beloved?" he asked in a gentle tone.

"When will you be leaving?" she inquired in a quiet voice, trying her best to hide any emotion and use her usual tone, but she was not doing a good job of it. She did not want him to leave.

"Leaving?" he echoed in a perplexed tone and then he realized what she was thinking about. "No, beloved, I'm not going on a trip or anything for my father. I just wished to buy you something," he explained.

Kikyo did not seem to buy that completely, which bothered him slightly. He was able to mask that he was little discomforted by her disbelief, so she did not notice. She turned her attention down to her present and opened the box. Staring at her was a pair of silver loop earrings. She smiled a little and then laughed.

"You know I don't have my ears pierced, Sessho," she pointed out.

"I thought that might be incentive for you to change that," he commented with a charming expression, nearly smiling back at her.

"It might," she said because they were lovely earrings. She had a few pairs of earrings thanks to her lover, but she still had not gotten her ears pierced. She was seriously starting to think that it was time for her to put a couple of holes in her ears to at least use the gifts.

"So, do you like them?" he inquired since she had not said anything about that.

"I love them," she answered the obvious. She loved everything that he brought her, even though she did not like that he spent so much money on her.

Sesshomaru nodded a little. He knew that she was generally pleased whenever he brought her something, which was one of the reasons that he enjoyed giving her things. Her expressions tended to make him feel pleased and like most beings on the planet, he liked feeling good about himself.

"Why did you get me these, Sessho?" she asked.

"Because I wanted you to grace me with your smile," he answered.

"Complimenting a sketch I did could have gotten you the same effect for less," she pointed out.

The dog demon made a face. Talking with Kikyo about her sketches was a battle in his opinion. She only saw her mistakes, so when he pointed out something that he liked about a picture, she already had a list of a dozen things wrong with just that piece that he liked. He stayed in the combat once it started for the simple fact that he felt he was right and he knew that if he did stick with it long enough, she would smile at him for a reason that was beyond him. He did not need to know the reason, but he hoped that the formula persisted or she just accepted when he liked something about a picture and skipped right to smiling at him.

"What did your father want with you?" she inquired, interrupting his thoughts.

He tensed up just enough for her to take note of. So, the gift more than likely did have something to do with what his father desired to see him about, she concluded. She now truly wanted to know what it was that his father wanted.

"Sessho," she said in her usual voice with just a bit of stone acting as a foundation. The hard tone let him know that he had to tell her or they were going to have a little tiff, which he did not desire.

"My father stuck me with a distasteful assignment of acting as the tour guide for a demon noble that is coming into the city tomorrow," he reported.

"I see. How bad could it be? Is this demon a child or something?" she inquired because of how irked that he sounded with his task.

"No, the demon isn't a child. The demon is a…woman," he admitted.

It was Kikyo's turn to tense up just enough for her beloved to notice. He was going to be showing a demon woman around the city? She instinctively did not like that idea, but her rational mind tried to calm her nerves almost immediately. Sesshomaru would not betray her, she reminded herself. He loved her and always would. They were practically made for each other, they completed each other. Surely he would not do anything to endanger their relationship. He was hers just as much as she was his, so everything would be all right, she promised herself.

"Why you?" Kikyo managed to ask while trying to will herself to believe the argument that her brain made as to why her lover would not do anything to injure what they had.

"Because he can't very well ask Inuyasha to walk a princess around the city. It would be a disaster," he pointed out.

She could not argue with that. Inuyasha was not fit to stroll around with a princess, not with the mouth that he had anyway. There was a chance that the demon noble would not have the same tastes in things as Inuyasha, but Sesshomaru would at least pretend to be able to stand something since his father wanted him to do it. Inuyasha would not have cared one way or another, not to mention he would not want to put up with the hurt look that Kagome would more than likely wear if he had to do the job that Sesshomaru did.

"Are you all right with it, beloved? If you don't want me to do it, I'll go tell my father that he could show the spoiled brat around," Sesshomaru declared and he meant those words.

Kikyo considered the offer, but declined. "You can show her around if you want to. I trust you, sweetheart," she informed him.

Sesshomaru was not sure how to respond. He wished that she had protested because it would have given him a chance to throw the task right back at his father. He did not want to bother with the demon woman, but it would seem that he was stuck with the job. He sighed; his father must have it out for him, he concluded. Not just his father, but the fates also since Kikyo had not objected to the assignment, even though it was clear that she disliked the idea.

--------------

Next time: Sesshomaru goes to pick up his charge and they immediately get on each other's nerves.


	4. Fly in

I don't own these characters.

4: Fly in

Sesshomaru groaned as he woke up. He was dreading the day ahead of him and not because he had to return to work and deal with those morons, which was usually why he disliked the day. Today he had to deal with the task that his father wanted him to do and also he had to hope that Kikyo completely meant her words that she trusted him. If she did not, then he was going to have deal with cutting and accusing glances until he had to get rid of the demon princess that his father wanted him to show around.

He ceased thinking about the annoyances in his life as his lover moved against him again; she had woken him up in the first place with her movement. Kikyo was trying to ease out of the bed as usual without waking him, but it was not possible. She was certain that one day she was going to go make out of bed without him being roused, but that day was not now.

"You're getting up early," Sesshomaru noted while glancing at the clock.

"I've got an early morning appointment," Kikyo answered.

"Oh, that's right. Well, that's a couple of hours from now," he commented, recalling her telling him about her appointment last night.

"So?" she said, not following where he was going at the moment.

Sesshomaru was so close to smiling. Sometimes, she was adorable because she was still kind of innocent. He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips for her to get what he was implying. The kiss seemed to be all that she needed to understand his words.

"Sessho, we don't have to time for this. You have work too," she pointed out.

"I have work in over two hours and you have work in two hours, so it sounds like we have time. You worry too much," he replied.

Kikyo was going to object, but he covered her mouth with his own. He moved over her, making sure to keep the kiss active. He began caressing her thigh with one hand to coax her into going along with his plan. She shifted her body into his touch after a little while and he smiled internally.

He worked her out of her pajamas eventually and got himself out of his pajama pants. He figured that the best way to start the day was by being intimate with Kikyo. He believed that it was like waking up and walking into the Garden of Eden. She would have agreed with that thought had she known.

After they indulged in each other and worked up more of a sweat than they needed at such an early stage in the morning, they got out of bed and went to clean up. Kikyo then took note of the time and had to hurry if she wanted to make it to her appointment on time, even if Sesshomaru was going to drive her to the center.

"You've made me late, beloved," she scolded Sesshomaru as they moved around the kitchen, looking for something that was able to be carried out of the apartment and could still count as breakfast.

"You're not late yet. You still have fifteen minutes to make it," he pointed out, motioning to the clock on the wall with an elegant sweep of his hand.

"Fifteen minutes? Sometimes it takes just that long for the bus to come," she countered.

"I'll drive you," he said easily. He could be late to work and probably would if he did drive her to the medical center.

"Still, if there is traffic, I won't make it in time," she stated.

"Calm down, love. It's not the end of the world and you won't be so late. So, just be calm," he argued gently.

"We have to leave now then," she informed him.

The dog demon did not argue. He was secretly glad that Kikyo did not often act as she was, mostly because she tended to command him about. He did not mind that she did it, but he was certain that he did not mind because it did not take place often. He was fairly sure that if she was pushy or absolutely controlling, he would not be able to stand her presence; she would be too much like her older sister.

The couple exited their home and Sesshomaru drove Kikyo to the clinic. She made it just in time for her appointment; it turned out that the person who wanted the appointment was late anyway. She sighed as she flopped down into the chair in her office.

"Good morning," Suikotsu greeted her, poking his head into her small office. He was smiling, as if he knew the secrets of the universe.

"Good morning," Kikyo replied in a pleasant manner.

"I brought you coffee," he informed her while stepping into the office and revealing that he was holding two cups.

"Oh, thank you," she muttered.

She accepted the cup, even though she did not often drink coffee. She felt that she had enough bad eating habits with her sweet tooth, so she did not want to put caffeine on her list. She did indulge every now and then and now would be one of the times.

Suikotsu smiled because of the thanks and blushed a little. He was a sweet fellow, she thought. She thought that she might even be able to be friends with him, if only he was not interested in her in a manner that just would not be. She doubted that she would consider him, even if she was not in a relationship. She just did not like the company that he kept and he was very loyal to his friends.

"You're here early today," the jovial male doctor noted.

"I had an early appointment, but he hasn't shown up yet," she explained while sipping her coffee. She almost cringed at the bitter taste, but caught herself. Whoa, she thought; the drink needed sugar.

"I see," he replied.

"What of you? You're here early," she pointed out.

"I have so much paperwork I need to catch up on," he reported with a little laugh.

She nodded, showing that she understood that. The problem with working in such a small clinic was that they sometimes had to go beyond just being doctors. They had to keep plenty of paperwork too. They sometimes thought that they were doctors as well as bookkeepers and secretaries, for themselves though.

"Well, good luck on your paperwork," she commented.

He nodded and he was about to say something else, but a nurse came in to inform Kikyo that her patient had arrived. Suikotsu bid her farewell as she allowed for the patient to be sent in an examination room. He walked off before Kikyo moved away from her desk.

Suikotsu thought about Kikyo was he went to his own office, which was the same size as Kikyo's space. She was such a wonderful woman, he thought. He knew that she had a boyfriend, but that did not take away from her loveliness. It also did not diminish his feelings for her.

He desired Kikyo and a dark voice inside of him demanded that he should have her. He mostly ignored the voice's tone, but he did agree with the pushy voice. He believed that he should have Kikyo because he thought that he would be better for her than the demon that she was with. He knew that she was with a demon due to the fact that she had a picture of Sesshomaru on her desk; it was a hand drawn self-portrait, not an actual photograph.

What was a gentle woman like her doing with a demon anyway, he often wondered. His friends could not figure it out, but they did like to assure him that he was certainly better than any demon. He was inclined to agree, so he thought that as long as he was patient and persistent with her, she would one day be his.

Kikyo seemed to sense his way of thinking, which was one of the reasons that she tried to keep her distance from Suikotsu when inside of the building. She did not want things to come to him and Sesshomaru having a confrontation since she already knew what her demon prince was capable of. She wished that Suikotsu would just leave her alone.

--------------

Sesshomaru checked his watch for the hundredth time in a few minutes. He had to go to the airport soon because he had to pick up the bird princess. He frowned just thinking about it, not because he did not like Abi, even though he did not. He could hardly remember her from his childhood, but that was more than likely because he wanted to wipe her from his memory.

He knew that his father and her mother were business associates and also the heads of their respective demon clans, so they had to interact every now and then. Their children had met each other through those occasional interactions. He and the princess had not had many exchanges in their meetings, though. He did not see why he should bother with even talking with a bird demon.

He did have anything in particular against bird demons. He just looked down on all demons that were not dog demons. At times, he even had his problems with dog demons. The whole world just seemed beneath him more often than not. People, humans and demons alike, just acted like pure idiots most of the time in his opinion.

He turned his attention back to his work to try to get that out of the way since he would be leaving early. He was working on a presentation for a new logo that he had produced. It was different from his usual work, but it had been something that his sister and Kikyo's little sister could get into. He had been hired to do a logo for a small business that sold skates, skateboards, and other skating equipment.

The teenage girls had been very happy to help Sesshomaru when he was coming up with a logo and the ad campaign for the business. After all their assistance, they made sure to ask him to try to get some free skates or equipment for them. He had sighed, but the noise meant nothing to the eager girls. They still expected free stuff.

Sesshomaru had no desire or intention to request anything from his client. He just wanted to get the work done and not have to bother with it until the next time the business wanted to do new ads. He typed a few lines on his computer and then he checked his watch again.

After a half-hour of work, the demon nobleman decided to call it a day. He sighed, hating to even think about the traffic that was going to exist on the way to the airport. Why did he have to pick the blasted woman up, he wondered. Was she too good for a taxi? It would make his life so much easier if she only took a cab. Well, it would actually make his life so much easier if he did not have to bother with her.

He was also a bit skeptical on Kikyo's acceptance to his job. He did not think that she had lied to him when she said that she trusted him, but he doubted that she finished that thought. She probably did not trust the demon woman that he had to show around. He knew that women hardly trusted other women, even if the woman did trust her mate. He did not want the job to ruin what he had with Kikyo.

He supposed that he should not worry until there seemed to be cause. At the moment, he was only speculating and he was stressing himself out over it. He told himself that he should just wait and see how the princess acted before judging her. She might surprise him.

The traffic to the airport was as expected. He sometimes wondered if all the planes there took off and arrived at the same time from the way the traffic was backed up. It was just about the only way that he could explain why the traffic was always at a standstill well over a few miles before even getting to the airport. It was irksome.

Then to top matters off, he had to park at the airport. He hated doing that too, but he had to met Abi when she got off of the plane; his father had insisted that he do such a thing. His exact words were "it's what a gentleman would do." Sesshomaru took it as a taunt more than as advice to make him act. Besides, he did not consider himself a gentleman; he just considered himself civil.

He strolled into the airport, going as far as he could do without having a ticket, and he began waiting. He folded his arms across his chest and tapped his index finger against his elbow as he waited. His annoyance was growing with each second, even though he understood how long it might take to make it to him from the gate that the airplane let the passengers off.

--------------

Abi spotted her escort in the throng of people at the airport. He looked different yet the same from what she could recall from when they were children. He still stood as if he was superior to the world; yes, he had been like that since he was a child. There was an inexplicable aloofness in his molten gold gaze that she recalled and she could see there now. It was like he could care less a damn if a comet crashed into the planet right now, killing everything, even though he was on the planet. Such a look had made him seem like such a strange child, even to her.

She hated him when they were children. He never seemed to get the idea that she was a princess and he should do everything that she wanted, even though he was a prince. In her mind back then, because he was a prince, he should do everything that a princess wanted. It was the chivalrous thing to do in her opinion. He used to coldly inform her that he was not some feudal-era knight that cared about chivalry in any shape or form. So, yes, she had loathed him deeply.

She supposed that she could understand his reasoning now that she was older, but that did not make her hate him any less. She had protested loudly and whined for days to her mother to just leave her on her own while she was overseas, but no, her mother insisted that she had already arranged for the escort. When Abi found out that it was going to be Sesshomaru, she damn near threw a tantrum right in her mother's office to get the older demon to call the arrangement off. Needless to say, her mother had not relented and even had the nerve to comment that she bet Sesshomaru had grown into a very handsome demon with a very suggestive smirk on her face. Abi had to force herself to not throw up at the end of that sentence or the underlying implications of it.

She did not care how handsome he was. In fact, she was willing to bet that he looked just like a woman now. She recalled that when he was a little boy, he had actually looked like a little girl. She secretly used to be jealous, thinking that he dared to be prettier than she was. And now that she saw him, even from a distance, he did look like a woman and, damn it, if he still did not look prettier than she did.

As she drew closer, she began amending her statement. Yes, he still looked like a woman in her opinion, but he was handsome in a way. She could not believe what she was thinking, but that irksome dog had grown up sexy. Damn him, she huffed in her mind, and then told herself that there was nothing sexy about a jerk like Sesshomaru.

--------------

Sesshomaru could smell Abi and her attitude long before he caught sight of her heading toward him. She still smelled the same from what he could remember, except there was hint of maturity underneath it all, which he expected since she was now a grown woman. He frowned when he finally saw her in the crowd, looking different from what he remembered, but he was willing to bet that the change in appearance had not changed what was underneath, namely a spoiled brat.

She had been quite the momma's girl when they were younger and he doubted that had changed. She would run to her mother every time he disagreed with her on something, which had been pretty much every time that he open his mouth. He once told her that she should do like the rest of the intelligent world and think before speaking and that way he would not have to cut down everything she said. She had taken special offense to that and he had gotten an intense scolding from his father. It was during times like that, Sesshomaru often asked himself why did he not just go live with his mother, but he had an answer for that; his father would come and take him on trips anyway.

"Princess Abi," he greeted her in his usual cold tone. He had to spit the word "princess" out, but preferred being formal with her anyway.

"Lord Sesshomaru," she replied with a frown on her face and dislike in her voice. No one was going to mistake the two for old friends, that was for sure.

"Get your bags and let's go," he ordered while turning away. He wanted to get back to his car as soon as possible to make sure that he still had a car. Of course, he could track it if it was gone, but he would rather not have to waste his time.

"You get my bags," she countered.

"Do I look like your servant, woman?" he inquired without bothering to turn around to speak with her. Formal was quickly forgotten in favor of rudeness it would seem.

"No, my servants aren't as sexually ambiguous," she replied.

Sesshomaru took the comment as if it was nothing; there was nothing ambiguous about him and his lover would attest to that. "If you do not get your bags, they'll simply be left at the airport," he informed her. He carried bags for two females and only two. Rin and Kikyo.

The dog demon then began to walk away. Abi frowned and went to go pick up her luggage, which thankfully came quickly. She silently followed behind the demon prince, cursing him in her mind. He was doing the same to her.

They got into the car and proceeded to the hotel that Abi was staying at for her visit, which was an undetermined amount of time. The ride was quieter than a grave; no music was even playing. Abi thought to correct that and turned on the radio, even though she did not know the stations in the city. She figured that she would be able to find some music given enough seconds.

"Do not touch anything in my car," he ordered her while clicking the radio off. He did not have anything against music for the ride, but now that she seemed to want some, he was totally against it.

"You're obviously looking to make this my worst trip ever," she commented.

Sesshomaru did not say anything. It was not his intent to make her trip unbearable. He supposed that he was acting a bit immature about the radio. He had been given a task and even though he did not like it, he knew that he should do it to the best of his ability. He did not want to be an embarrassment to his family.

"Listen, Princess Abi, we are two grown demons, correct?" he asked.

"Indeed," she answered.

"With no way out of our current predicament unless someone dies, correct?"

"That it is. If we're taking a vote, I put in a bid that it be you," she remarked.

The dog demon frowned slightly. The damned bird woman was making it very hard to be civil toward her. He took a slow inhale before calmly continuing on as if she had not said anything at all.

"Since we are stuck with each other, let's attempt to be mature about this. Now, I will drop you off at your hotel and you can get settled in. Tomorrow at the earliest, I will show you around the city and that way neither of us has to hear any nonsense from a parent," he stated plainly.

Abi seemed to think on that proposal for a moment. Could she actually be courteous toward Sesshomaru? Well, she supposed that she could if he could be the same toward her. After all, she would not want him to end up being polite, but she continued to bite his head off because he might report that to his father, who would then report her behavior to her mother. She had little desire to have to deal with her mother if she was upset. Besides, maybe when Sesshomaru was not acting as if he was a complete and total jackass, he was halfway likeable.

"Fine," she agreed as if it pained her to do so.

"All right."

"But, why tomorrow?" she asked curiously. What if she wanted to see the city now? It was only the afternoon, after all.

"Because I have a schedule too," he answered.

"You should have changed your schedule," she pointed out.

"This is you being civil?" he inquired.

"I'm merely saying that you were aware I would be coming today, so you should have adjusted for it."

"My life doesn't revolve around you and it's not going to start now," he retorted.

"This is you being civil?" she now asked.

Sesshomaru did not respond right away. It would seem that being polite to each other was going to take considerable effort. Well, at least they were confident that they were not going to attack each other. It was also a weight off of Sesshomaru's shoulders that Abi still did not like him for the fact that he figured Kikyo would not suspect him of anything, especially if she got to see him interact with the bothersome bird demon.

"It would seem if we wait for tomorrow, we might at least get off on a better foot," he offered.

Abi supposed that was logical; it was logical enough anyway when it came to them. So, he dropped Abi off at her hotel, even pretending to be a gentleman and offered to see her to her room. She looked at him as if she was offended by the very notion.

"Like I'd show you my room," she commented, even though she knew that he did not mean it in any lecherous way. She did not need any help up to her room, especially from a lazy bastard that would not even carry her bags for her from the airport.

He was now offended by the implications of that statement. "Don't flatter yourself," he replied.

Abi decided to leave him be, especially since tomorrow she was going to have to at least try to get along with him. She went into the hotel and Sesshomaru went home. He was pleased to see his beloved was home already. She was sitting on the sofa, eating a slice of the cake that he brought her and reading a book.

"Good evening, angel," he greeted her while sitting down next to her.

"Good evening, Sessho," she replied while leaning over to give her a small peck on the lips and in the process getting cake crumbs on his mouth. He was unaffected by that and just licked the cake off when she pulled away.

"Did you just get in?" he asked.

"Yes, and before you ask, my sister drove me, so I didn't have to take the bus," she informed him.

"I wish you would just buy a car," he commented.

"I get around just fine without one," she replied. She had a driver's license and had had one since she was seventeen, but she just did not drive. She was always able to get where she needed to go by public transportation and that was good enough for her. "So, how did everything go?" she inquired since she knew that his "task" started that day.

He sighed as if he was exhausted. "The woman is infuriating, just as I remember her," he answered.

"Remember her?" Kikyo echoed.

"I met her a few times as a child," he reported.

Kikyo craned an elegant eyebrow. He was familiar with the woman that he had to show around? Part of her disliked that and she was not sure why. It probably had something to do with the fact that he was only just mentioning that he knew the demon female and there was a chance that the familiarity ran deep. It did not matter, though, she told herself. Sesshomaru was going to have to show that woman around no matter what.

"Anything you want to talk about?" she asked since he claimed that the demon woman was infuriating.

"No," he replied and just took her in his arms. Her presence so close to him relaxed him. It made him forget that Abi had gotten on his nerves and he thought that maybe because of that, he would be able to be well-mannered toward her tomorrow. Or so was the hope.

--------------

Next time: Sesshomaru and Abi try to get along while Kikyo has to put up with Suikotsu making her doubt her relationship with Sesshomaru.


	5. Possibly

I don't own these characters.

5: Possibly

"Let me see if I have this straight," Midoriko said. She was sitting down with Kikyo, having lunch as they tended to do. They were at a little café, not too far from the medical center.

"It is just what I said," Kikyo argued because she did not want to hear her sister repeat everything back to her. Since they were talking rather than eating, she was also gracefully circling her finger around the glass of her lemonade for lack of a better thing to do and it was a strange habit of hers.

"Okay, so you're telling me that you agreed with Sesshomaru showing a demon woman around town that he knows from his childhood?" the elder sister inquired in disbelief.

Midoriko could not believe that her younger sister would agree to such a thing. He was not just a demon, but a dog demon. He probably just needed to catch a whiff of another woman and he would be off, she thought. It was like Kikyo had practically dared him to be unfaithful in her opinion.

"You make it sound so idiotic upon repeating it back," Kikyo replied. She had told her sister about it because they were having lunch on a day that she usually had lunch with Sesshomaru, but he was already off with Princess Abi, which she tried not to think too much on. She had given her consent and she trusted him and that was all that mattered as far as she was concerned.

"I just don't want you to get your heart broken, little sister. I know how you cherish him and all, but he is a demon," Midoriko pointed out. She knew and actually understood that Kikyo was deeply in love with the dog demon, but part of her could not accept that Sesshomaru was the same in regards to Kikyo because he was a demon.

"I trust my Sessho," Kikyo declared with confidence. She did trust him and that was all there was to it. She refused to think any further on the matter or she knew that she would not like what came to mind.

"Your Sessho is a dog," Midoriko said.

"He's not like that. Why are you always so mean towards him?"

"He makes it so easy," the eldest answered with a small, amused smile. She supposed that she did not dislike the dog demon as much as she made it seem, but it was fun to pretend. Hell, Kikyo knew how fun it was to tease the very proper, rigid demon.

"Yes, well, his father is making him escort the woman around. I believe he said her name was Abi," Kikyo replied.

Abi had already been around for a few days. Sesshomaru mentioned her a few times at home, but he rarely said her name. He seemed irked by her, like he was with the rest of the world. He called her an "uncultured bird-brain" once because she wanted him to take her to dance clubs and things, which were places that he tended to stay away from. He was starting to think that Inuyasha should have been given the job of showing her around if those were the types of places that she wanted to visit.

"Well, I suppose if he does end up doing something foolish, there is always your gang member doctor to fall back on," Midoriko remarked.

Kikyo made a face, somewhere between horrified and disgusted. She would never go out with Suikotsu, even if Sesshomaru did "something foolish." She did not think that Sesshomaru would ever do something foolish anyway. She could see to the depths of his soul through his golden eyes and believed that he would be faithful to her and cherish her just as she did him. So, she did not entertain any kind of ideas on going with someone else.

"Suikotsu is not my type," Kikyo stated once again.

"No? I thought you enjoyed the troublesome type," Midoriko remarked with a teasing smile.

"It was only once. If I truly enjoyed the troublesome type, I would have given Inuyasha a try," the middle sister commented.

"This is true."

"And what is your type, sister?" Kikyo inquired, just to turn the tables.

"My career is my type, making sure that I can keep the youngest one amongst us fed, clothed, and sheltered," Midoriko answered, almost as if it was automatic.

"Dear sister, do you have such little faith in me still that you don't think I can help in these areas?"

"I know that you can help. It's just…" Midoriko trailed off, trying to think of the best way to explain herself. "I've grown accustomed to this routine and I think I quite like it. I'd rather not upset it," she decided on.

Kikyo did not look very affected by that answer. "The routine is going to end sometime. Keade is now fourteen and attending high school. She's going to go off to college in four years and your life is going to change. You should get out some now, if only to make yourself comfortable with it," she argued.

Midoriko looked away for a moment. She was unsure what to say. She did not really want to get a social life. She had tried it a few times in the past and it seemed awkward. She felt…strange, like a fish out of water.

"I am…not good with people," the eldest sister stated.

Kikyo looked skeptical on those words. She had only known her sister her whole life to know what the woman was like. Midoriko was quite good with people, which was one of the reasons why she was such a good lawyer. Besides, she knew what it was like when someone was not good with people; she had seen Inuyasha and Sesshomaru in action after all. She and her sister were both good with people; they were just distant with most people. Kikyo believed that if Midoriko went out and mingled a bit, she might find someone that she could actually get close to.

"Miko," Kikyo started out with the nickname that she used for her older sister. It went way back to when she was toddler and just could not fully say Midoriko's name. She was using it now in a gentle tone to try to argue her point. "I've seen you with people. You're very good with them. You should try it, if only to make sure you're not lonely when Keade eventually leaves."

"Maybe she'll go to college in the city," Midoriko argued. She would be lonely in the apartment when Keade left and four years was like no time at all, which she knew, but she was trying to tell herself that four years was practically forever.

"It is possible, but even still, she might want to live in the dorms anyway to try to see what life is like on her own."

"You'll still be here," Midoriko pointed out.

"Well, of course I will. But, I wouldn't be able to see you as often as you would probably like and you know that," Kikyo countered.

Midoriko was silent for a moment. She knew that Kikyo would not be able to fill the void that Keade would leave her with once she went off to college. Of course, no one would fill that hole in her life because that was her baby sister, but she probably would need someone in her life. She did not think that dating was the answer, though.

Unfortunately, she knew that she would not be able to hang out with Kikyo much more than she already did. Kikyo had a boyfriend to tend to, after all. Midoriko sighed; she was not sure what she was going to do once their baby sister went away to college.

"I'll worry about Keade going to college when it happens. Right now, I have to focus on my job and making enough money to send her to college," the eldest commented.

"Well, I am here to help," Kikyo reminded her older sister.

"I know and I do appreciate it," Midoriko said because she knew that sometimes she had the bad habit of treating Kikyo as if she could not and did not do anything right. She believed in Kikyo and was more than willing to accept help from the middle sister, especially since she was able to do so much so easily now.

Kikyo smiled a bit. It was good to hear that her older sister appreciated her. She wanted to stop being a burden to Midoriko, even though she hoped that the eldest did not look at her as such. Still, she wanted Midoriko to stop thinking that she needed to be taken care of and think of her as someone that could help in whatever way was necessary.

Midoriko knew that she had said the right thing because of her sister's expression. She then tried to steer the conversation away from her being social and possibly dating. She just was not comfortable with the idea and did not want to talk about it.

--------------

Abi was stunned. She could not believe that Sesshomaru had depth to him. He had taken her to an art museum and actually seemed to appreciate the work. She was no artist and did not know much about the subject, but it was still shocking, borderline impressive, for Sesshomaru to know things about art. She just did not expect it from the arrogant dog, thinking that he would probably be bored with art, like he was with everything else on the planet.

Part of her did not believe that Sesshomaru was as knowledgeable about art as he pretended to be, so she decided to test him. She asked what she thought was a simple question about a painting and the dog demon pretty much gave her a dissertation on the subject. He actually knew what he was talking about it would seem. Abi hated to admit it, but now, she was actually impressed with him. How horrible, she thought.

"When did you get interested in art?" the bird demon inquired.

"As a teen," Sesshomaru answered in a dismissive tone, which was his usual tone of speaking with Abi.

Abi nodded for lack of a better thing to do. Sesshomaru had been surprising for the few days that she had been hanging out with him. He was boring as far as she could tell. He refused to take her to any clubs or anything like that, but now she was seeing that his arrogance had actually grown into sophistication. Yes, he was still full of himself, but there was more to him than that. It was almost overwhelming as she tried to take it all in. He was changing an image in her mind that she had held since she was a small child.

"Ready to move on?" he asked since they were trying to be polite to one another. It had been working as well as they could expect. She still carried some of her attitude in her voice and his voice still seemed like it would freeze a penguin, but it was clear that they were making the attempt.

"Please," she replied and they walked off.

Sesshomaru led her to the next painting. He silently admitted that he preferred Abi when they were faking like they could get along. It was not that he liked her, but just that she was better than when she always had some smart-aleck remark to share. He felt like he might be able to go home and not have to inform Kikyo that he could not take hanging out with Abi anymore as he had done the first couple of days that he had to spend with the demon princess.

It had taken the pair a couple of days to adjust to each other and settle into trying to be civil when in the other's company. So, at first, when Sesshomaru went home after spending the day with her, he was always tense because he had been aching to just tear into her verbally to be done with her. But, it seemed that they were finally getting the hang of it, but he hoped that she was going home soon.

"Are we going to go to lunch soon?" Abi inquired curiously after a few more minutes of wandering the museum. She believed that she should be bored out of her mind, but really she was not. She was actually enjoying having Sesshomaru explain artwork to her.

"We can go now. I know a place near by that serves decent food," he answered.

The nobleman took the princess to a restaurant that he frequented with Kikyo when they were making rounds through the art museum. He had actually never made it through as much of the museum in one visit with Kikyo as he did with Abi because Kikyo had to analysis works and then he had counter her and they would almost always get into a debate. That could not happen with Abi because she was not into art.

Sesshomaru at first considered that his father had picked the wrong son for the job. Abi seemed like she would have enjoyed being around Inuyasha just because he knew all of the "exciting" places to hang out. But, it would seem now that Abi was enjoying herself with him and going places that she would not normally go.

The bird demon was enjoying herself. Sesshomaru seemed to be full of surprises between being boring, but likable about it, and knowing so much about art. She liked having her horizons broadened.

The pair was seated immediately when they entered the swank restaurant, but Abi did note the odd look given to her and Sesshomaru by the hostess. She did wonder about it. Sesshomaru also noted the look and knew that the hostess was wondering why he was in the restaurant with a woman that was clearly not Kikyo. Usually he would not care and think that the woman should mind her business, but he would hate for a rumor to start and trouble brew over the matter. Heaven forbid Midoriko think that he was cheating on her little sister because the busybody would just push the idea on Kikyo, even if Kikyo did not believe it. He did not even want to chance Kikyo believing it.

"It's not what you think," Sesshomaru said to the hostess as she led them to a table.

"Hey, sir, it's your business," the hostess replied.

"It is, but it isn't what you think and it would behoove you to not tell anyone otherwise," he replied with steel in his voice for the young lady to perfectly understand him.

The hostess gulped and nodded while Sesshomaru and Abi took their seats. The princess was curious as to what that exchange was all about. She figured since she and Sesshomaru were acting so friendly toward each other then she might be able to find out.

"Now, what was the point of that?" the female demon inquired nonchalantly.

"It's none of your concern," Sesshomaru replied. He had not mentioned Kikyo to Abi, but then again, he had not said anything to her about his life really. He did not even tell her about his job.

"Oh?" Abi did not like that response, so she slipped into old habits. "Scared she was going to tell your boyfriend that you're out with a woman," she remarked.

Sesshomaru did not comment. Just when he thought that Abi was someone that he could tolerate for an afternoon as long as he tried, she had to go and ruin that. He sincerely hoped that she was going home soon, like tomorrow soon.

Abi frowned when the platinum-haired male did not rise to the occasion to bicker with her. He was just being no fun now, she thought with a huff. It would seem that Abi did get some entertainment and fun out of just going back and forth with Sesshomaru and that it was not just out of spite and resentment that she snapped at him so many times whenever they happened to be around each other.

--------------

It was Suikotsu's day off. He was running an errand instead of hanging out with his friends, as he usually would do on his day off. His friends had taunted him before he left, saying that he was going to go try to buy a gift for "that good-looking doctor" he worked with. They were referring to Kikyo, but he was not going out to get her a gift, but since they did put the idea in his head, he figured that it would not hurt to keep his eyes open in case he did come across something nice for her.

While strolling down the street, he passed by a demon couple; well, he assumed it was a couple. It was a male and a female walking together anyway, which he figured to be a couple. It would not have bothered him since it was a normal thing, but something about the male of the couple seemed rather eerily familiar, which he thought was odd because he did not know any demons. And then it hit him with the same impact of a speeding train. That was the demon that Kikyo had a picture of in her office.

Was it possible that the demon was not her boyfriend, as he had assumed? He was not sure now that he saw Sesshomaru on the street that woman demon. He supposed that it was possible, but he could not figure out why Kikyo would have a picture of Sesshomaru on her desk if he was not her lover. Or maybe he was her lover and he was cheating on her, the doctor considered.

He thought that it was possible since Sesshomaru was a demon. Like most humans, he had a negative opinion of demons; just like most demons had a negative opinion of humans. So, he was willing to believe that Sesshomaru was probably cheating on Kikyo. It was not like demons cherished other people's feelings, he told himself. That foolish demon was probably just using Kikyo, he told himself. If that was the case, he should tell her, he figured.

But, what if she did not believe him? He was not sure. She was a very sweet, kind, and just all around lovely woman, but that did not mean that she would believe him on personal matters like her boyfriend cheating on her. He was not sure what he should do. Maybe one of his friends would know what he should do, he considered. And then he almost laughed out loud, like any of them knew anything about handling such a situation or knew anything about women.

He was on his own, he figured. He decided to make a trip to the medical center to see if Kikyo was in. She was with a patient, so he had to wait. He went to his office and tried to figure what he was going to say to her about the whole situation. He was not sure how one went about starting a conversation with a colleague informing her that her boyfriend was cheating on her.

He never did figure out what he was going to tell her when he noticed that she was in her office now; her office was a little down the hall from hers and he knew that if the door was open, it meant that she was in there. He went to the office and rapped lightly on the door to get her attention. She turned around her head toward the door, which was to the right of her. She was surprised to see who her visitor was.

"Suikotsu, what are you doing here?" Kikyo asked in a curious, but polite fashion. She could have sworn it was his day off because she had not seen him all morning, which she was thankful for. She had hoped that her afternoon would be filled with his absence too.

"I came by to see you," he answered with a bit of a smile, as if he was proud of himself.

"Oh," she muttered, not sure how to react to his words or his expression. She wondered if she had done anything that might be considered stringing him along for him to consider just coming to see her out of the blue. She had been friendly the few times that they interacted with each other, but she was friendly to everyone. That was just how she was. She hoped that he was not taking it as something more. "Well, what can I do for you?" she inquired. There was a chance that he might need something of her professionally, she told herself.

"I was wondering about that picture on your desk," he started off. It was the best that he had, even though he guessed that it might seem weird to her. But then again, she might take it as friendly banter, he considered.

Kikyo glanced at the sketch of Sesshomaru on her desk. "What about it?" she asked.

"I was just wondering who that is. I mean, you've got a drawing of him and it seems like an interesting thing to have. I mean, why not a photo?" he inquired. He now had no idea how he was going to tie the line of questioning in with what he saw on the street.

"Well, he drew it and gave it to me," she answered in a slightly puzzled tone. That picture had been there since she began work, so she did not understand why Suikotsu, who had been at the clinic for months now, was asking about it now.

"Oh, that's nice. So, who is he?" he asked while internally congratulating himself because now he would be able to figure out if he should even share what he saw. After all, the demon might just be a good friend of hers, which still worked out for him because he figured that she was actually single if the demon was just a friend.

Kikyo figured that answering that question might actually get Suikotsu to leave her alone, so she admitted it. "He's my boyfriend," she answered. It felt a bit odd saying out loud because she never thought of Sesshomaru as a "boyfriend." He was her beloved, her love, her dearest one, her Sessho, but she never called him her boyfriend.

Suikotsu had actually not been expecting that answer. He had been preparing to sigh in relief as soon as she just said that he was a friend of hers, but the answer that had come out forced all of his air to stay in as if there was a cork down his throat. It would seem that he was going to have to break the bad news to her, but he supposed that it would out well for him. Sure, she would be brokenhearted, but he would be there for her and then she would be able to be with him like he wanted. It would all work out for the best because he would take care of her and cherish her much better than that demon could.

"I think that I saw your boyfriend earlier walking with another demon…It was a woman," he informed her.

Kikyo did not look surprised or shocked or hurt, which were the things that he expected. She looked rather passive, as if she knew, which she did of course. He was not aware that she knew what Sesshomaru was doing with his time of late. The way that Sesshomaru made it seem was that he was being annoyed most of the time now.

"They looked rather cozy," he added. He did not think that he was lying or exaggerating. He recalled thinking that they looked like a couple and so to him, they had to seem cozy with each other.

Kikyo now frowned ever so slightly. Sesshomaru had looked cozy with a woman that he seemed to hate almost on the same level as he hated his job? She thought that perhaps Suikotsu was mistaken.

"I doubt that was him," she said.

"No, I'm sure that it was. I thought that you might like to know," he replied.

"Yes. Thank you," she said graciously.

"No problem," he replied.

Suikotsu eventually left as Kikyo had another patient to take care of. She tried to dismiss his words from her mind. She figured that even if he had seen Sesshomaru with Abi, they probably did not look "cozy." After all, Sesshomaru never looked "cozy," especially to the untrained eye.

But, her mind asked, what if he did? What if Sesshomaru was comfortable with that girl from his childhood who was now a woman? What if she lost her dearest Sessho to a demon? After all, he held demons in high regards, compared to humans anyway. She decided to stop thinking about it at the moment because it was highly inappropriate since her patient needed to have her undivided attention. But, as soon as she was finished with the patient, her mind begged the question "what if."

--------------

Next time: Abi makes an offer, does Sesshomaru refuse? Kikyo is nervous, does she have cause to be?


	6. Out of the frying pan

I don't own these characters.

6: Out of the frying pan

Sesshomaru walked Abi to her hotel room, as he had been told several times it was what a gentleman would do and she had not objected for the first time since she had been in town. He just wanted to make sure that she made it in, even though he knew that she could take care of herself. He was also skeptical that anything ever would happen to her from the hotel front door to her suite, but he wanted to be sure because if something did happen, it would be on him. He did not want to have deal with his father if something happened to the princess.

Abi had not made a fuss about Sesshomaru seeing her up because she had had a good time with him, walking around an art museum all day. She had not expected the day to be as nice as it was, but she had seen a few different sides of Sesshomaru that day and she had been impressed by the arrogant dog. Maybe her mother knew what she was doing when she enlisted the dog to show her around, Abi silently considered.

They silently walked up to her room. She put her key card in the door and opened the door. She was about to step inside, but she turned around back to the dog demon. She smirked just a bit and he hated to consider what the expression might mean. He thought that he might have to duck in a moment because she might strike him.

"Would you like to come in for a little while? Maybe we could crack open a bottle of wine," Abi offered.

"I'll have to pass. I have to get home," Sesshomaru answered while hoping that offer was not what it would usually mean if a female proposed such a thing. After all, she was Princess Abi, his own personal annoyance and he was supposed to be the same to her.

"Are you sure?" she inquired.

"Yes, I really have to get home. Unlike you, I'm not here on vacation," he reminded her.

"Yes," she conceded, although she did not see what the nobleman had to do with his life. She had heard that he had a job, but he had not said anything about it, so she was not sure if she totally believed that. She actually could not picture him working a regular job like an average person. "Well, what shall we do tomorrow then?" she inquired.

"What would you like to do?" he countered. He was showing her around and he was trying to be polite, so he thought that it was a good idea to get her input. He just hoped that she did not say something like a dance club again.

"I don't really know. This is your town and you know plenty of good things. Maybe something with a little excitement in it, though," she replied.

The golden-eyed male's face twitched, which she noticed. She was not completely sure of the meaning in the movement. Had she insulted him? Did he think that she was being childish again? He had said that she was behaving like a kid when she told him that she wanted to go out drinking and to some clubs. She had been offended by him saying such a thing then, but now, if he was thinking it, she was not offended. She was nervous.

Abi knew that she was nervous about it because she now did not want Sesshomaru to think little of her. She had noticed his growth as a person and she wanted him to think the same of her. She was a little annoyed by that and decided to blame such thinking on her hormones because she knew what she meant when she invited the dog demon into her room.

"I'll think on it and try to figure out some place 'exciting'," he finally replied. He would try to think of something that he might be able to bear sitting through that she would also enjoy. He was not sure something like that existed.

"All right," she said.

"Good night," he bid her farewell.

"Good night to you too," she replied and she entered her room.

Abi sighed as soon as she shut the door. She could not believe what she had just done, but she could not help it. Sesshomaru was sexy and sophisticated. The worst part was that he seemed to know that he was those things and he gave off vibes of confidence, but acted as if it was totally natural. It was like he expected to be such things because he was Sesshomaru, which only made it sexier.

"Why couldn't the bastard stay the same girly-looking brat from when we were younger?" Abi asked herself.

The bird demon was upset with herself now. Damn his looks and damn her noticing, among other things. She supposed that it was not so bad, though. She was a demon and he was a demon; they had understandings as such when it came to things like lust. It was not something deep or loving or emotional or anything that a human might link with an activity like sex. It was just something pleasing, like eating good food or indulging in fine wine. Since it would be relatively meaningless, she thought that it would be all right to go with.

She told herself that she should be ashamed of herself, though. He was still Sesshomaru and despite the wonderful time he had shown her today, he was still an arrogant asshole. One day did not erase a whole lifetime of being a jerk, she reminded herself, but she was not really listening. He had already gotten to her.

"Shit, a few kind words, a nice art museum, a walk, a great lunch, and weird looks make me want to jump Sesshomaru of all people?" Abi was in disbelief. She supposed that it was a good thing that sex really meant nothing to demons, but she silently admitted that it would piss her off if that stuck up bastard turned her down again.

--------------

Sesshomaru sighed as he entered his home. He glanced into the kitchen as he took his shoes off; he had been able to smell the food cooking from down the hall. Kikyo was preparing dinner, which shocked him a bit. She usually warned him when she was going to cook, just to make sure that he did not surprise her with some kind of takeout food. He did not think too much of her actions, though.

The dog demon quietly walked up behind her. "Beloved," Sesshomaru whispered in her ear as he wrapped his arms around the petite doctor and embraced her from behind, his hands hooking around her waist.

"Sessho, how was your day?" she asked curiously while making sure to keep her eyes on the food.

"Better than expected," he replied.

"Better?" she echoed. His choice of wording seemed a bit odd to her. Perhaps that had something to do with the fact that Suikotsu had told her earlier that he had seen Sesshomaru on the street looking "cozy" with a demon woman, even though she would deny that his words had any affect on her.

"Yes," he simply stated. It was now his turn to voice his curiosity. "What made you cook?" he inquired.

"I'm not totally sure. I just thought that it would be nice to have a homemade meal once this month," she remarked.

He chuckled a bit; the sound vibrating in his chest and into her back since he was embracing her. The amused noise meant that he was in agreement with her and she knew that. She smiled a little bit, which made him do the same.

The smile did hide the fact that Kikyo was wondering just what he meant when he said that his day was "better than expected." Deep down, she knew that she was taking it the wrong way, but the seeds of doubt had already been planted thanks to her older sister and colleague. So, the question in her mind was what did he mean by "better than expected"? She did not know the answer, but she knew that she was going to try to find out. She at least was going to make sure that she was still the only one for the nobleman.

Sesshomaru stood there with Kikyo for a few moments, remaining pressed against her back. He nuzzled her neck, kissing the area lightly to make sure not to leave a mark, like he had done before. She did not complain about the attention, as she never did, even though they both knew that he was more in the way than anything else. She did avoid encouraging him for once because she did want to complete the meal without burning it.

They had had a few incidents where Kikyo had burned dinner because she ended up encouraging the platinum-haired demon and he would push the limits, taking her right to the edge. He always looked so amused when she allowed him to do something that he was ware that she thought it was inappropriate. He was more than aware that he was the only male alive that would ever be able to see Kikyo do such things or that she would allow to do such things to her, like have her in the kitchen. It was arousing just thinking about it.

"Sessho, stop," Kikyo admonished him as his hands wandered from her waist, one traveling behind her while the other slid lower.

"Why?" he asked in his usual tone.

"Because I don't want to ruin dinner yet again. Things like this are why we haven't had a homemade meal in a month," she pointed out.

He laughed again. He could stand having takeout food if he could have her on their kitchen counter. Just thinking about the erotic scene and letting the last time it had happened play in his mind forced him to exhale slowly while his hands continued on, forgetting the scolding from seconds ago. He began petting her and nuzzling her again.

"Sessho, stop," she repeated while pushing his hands away, which did not halt him much. He continued snuggling into her neck.

"I'd rather not," he informed her.

"Sessho," she said in a stern voice, which irked him just enough to get him to not put his hands back on her.

The dog demon frowned a bit and decided to leave her to her cooking. He went to take a shower, lacking anything better to do at the moment since he could not have his angel on the kitchen counter or on the kitchen floor; yes, they had done that before on a number of occasions too. He supposed that he could see her side of things. It had to be annoying to start a task and then get distracted, even in a most pleasant way, only to find the task ruined because of the time that it was left neglected. He still liked to believe that being with him had to be much more fulfilling than cooking dinner.

Kikyo had rebuffed Sesshomaru because she did want to finish dinner for once. She thought that if they had a nice, home-cooked meal, then it would make him more open to talking about his day. He typically did not speak on being around Abi and she accepted that, until now anyway. She sucked her teeth, disliking the feeling that was overcoming her because of two people, one of them who did not even know Sesshomaru and probably was mistaken in his reporting what he saw.

She was aware that Sesshomaru did not even like Abi, but the fact that they had described as being "cozy" bothered her, much more than it should and she knew that. Knowing it did not make the problem go away. She hoped that his words would dispel the feeling creeping through her like some loathsome insect, so she wanted him to tell her that she was the only one for him, like he often did.

By the time that Sesshomaru got out of the shower, she finished with dinner. She made him a plate and herself a plate. They sat at their small table with the meal and Sesshomaru cracked a bottle of wine to mark the occasion of them having a homemade meal for the first time in over a month. She thought that it was a bit amusing for some reason and cracked a smile, which he thoroughly enjoyed.

"So, Sessho, what is that made this day better than expected?" Kikyo inquired in her usual tone. One might think that question was rather bluntly because of what was on her mind, but he did not know what she was thinking, so it seemed like an average question to his ears.

"She's not as ridiculous as I thought," Sesshomaru answered with a shrug.

"Meaning what?" she asked, making sure to keep her voice as even as it always was. She did not want him to know that there was doubt in her heart, especially since she was almost certain that she was just being silly about the whole thing.

"I took her to the Demonic Art Museum and she was into many of the pieces, even wanted to know one of the artists to go look at more of his work and perhaps even buy one," he answered.

"Oh, you went to the museum. Have they put in that new exhibit yet?" Kikyo asked curiously.

"No, beloved, they have not."

"They've been advertising it for months now," she pointed out in a slightly disappointed tone. It was hard to tell, but he picked up on the pitch in her voice.

"I know. When it finally arrives, someone will call us and I'll take you," he promised.

"All right. So, did you enjoy going to the museum with her?"

"It was a different sort of experience. She could not offer up any debate, which is what I'm used to thanks to you," he replied, seemingly teasing her with his expression and tone, which hardly seemed different, but she could tell what he was doing.

"It wouldn't happen if you would just agree with me," she informed him with a small smile.

"I would agree if your observations were not so twisted."

"Twisted?" she repeated as if she took offense to the term, but he knew that she was only putting on a show.

"It is twisted. If it was correct, I would agree."

"Your view is the twisted one, always seeing the most horrendous things behind art. So, was that all you did today?" she inquired. She could understand how he could spend the whole day in the museum since they had done it many times before in many different museums.

"No, we went to a couple of museums and walked through the park. I wasn't totally sure what to do with this woman."

"Did she enjoy these things?"

"I'm not sure. I think she did, but sometimes it's hard to tell with her. She had a few snide remarks about everything, but she did not put up much resistance while we were doing them. She wants to do something exciting tomorrow," he reported with a sigh.

"Like what?" she inquired with a bit more interest than she meant to. He noticed, but he did not think anything of it.

"I don't know. I don't know what I'm going to do with her."

She nodded a bit. She was not sure why, but his indifference and indecision about the demon woman put her at ease just a bit. He did not seem to care much about the demon female and that was good enough for her, for the moment anyway.

"You'll figure something out," she assured him to put him at ease. She knew that he did not want to mess up the task given to him or he would have to deal with his father and even though Sesshomaru could handle many things, his father was not on that very long list.

"What would you want to do that's 'exciting'?" he asked curiously.

She smiled a bit, looking rather amused. "Sweetheart, we both know that I'm just as boring as you. The most 'exciting' thing we've done outside was watch our sisters in those skating competitions. I wouldn't know what's really exciting."

"What are some of the things that my brother does with your cousin?" he inquired, thinking that since Abi had seemed a bit more Inuyasha's speed the first couple of days in her stay, he could use Inuyasha as a reference. The thought of such a thing made him feel absolutely dirty.

"He takes her to sporting events," she replied.

Sesshomaru made a noise and shook his head. He was not into sports for the most part. He would watch them every now and then, but he would rather not spend money to see a game of any kind. Besides, he doubted that Abi would enjoy a sporting event; she just did not seem like the type.

"Do you think a show would count?" he asked.

"I suppose it would depend on the show. Do you know when she's going home yet?" she inquired.

"I do not," he admitted with another sigh. He wished that the bird demon would go home soon just so he could stop acting as her babysitter. Sure, she was not as annoying as he first thought she would be, but now it seemed like she was making advances toward him and he really did not need that in his life. If Kikyo just suspected him of something, it could be a complete and total disaster on the level of Armageddon as far as he was concerned.

"Relax just a little bit, beloved. You make it seem as if this physically pains you," she commented.

"I would just rather not do this. She is a grown female. I don't see why she needs an escort, especially one that she doesn't share any of the same interests with. I would rather be doing these things with you if anyone at all," he replied, figuring that if he added that end on it would at least get him some points and make sure that she knew nothing was going on. Besides, it was the truth. If he was going to be taking anyone out and around town, he would prefer that it be Kikyo.

"Life is about sometimes going through things that you don't want to do, sweetheart," she pointed out.

He conceded that matter with a motion of his hand and then decided to focus on the meal, which was one of his favorites. He was now glad that she had made dinner and had kept him from ruining the food. He noted that she glanced at him through out the meal and he was curious about that. He wondered what was going through her mind. It seemed like she was bothered by something, but she did not want to voice the problem. He suspected that he knew what was on her mind considering the conversation that they just had.

"Do you want to do anything tonight?" the dog demon inquired once he finished his food.

"Staying in is fine by me," she answered as she cleared the table.

Sesshomaru nodded. He did not see anything wrong with that. He got up from the table and went into the back while Kikyo did the dishes. He returned a few minutes later and found his woman on the sofa with a pint of ice cream. He chuckled to himself; she was such a junk food addict and he thought that it was cute for some reason. He went over to her and kneeled down to her level.

"Come with me," he whispered seductively in her ear.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Don't ask any questions. Just come."

Kikyo wondered what he was up to, but she obeyed. She put her ice cream down and he lifted her into his arms. She made a surprised noise because she had not expected such actions from him. Now, she was truly curious as to what her beloved was up to. He began working her out of her clothing, which were house clothes since she had been in the house for a few hours and had no plans to go back outside. She thought that she knew what he was up to, but when they got to the hallway, he took a right instead of a left. A left would have gone into the bedroom while the right went into the full bathroom.

Kikyo was surprised by what was waiting in the bathroom. There were scented candles lit and flower petals spread around the area. She looked up at Sesshomaru, who pretended not to be paying her any mind and just trying to get her out of her clothing.

"Sessho," she said, but she was not sure what she wanted to say.

"Shh," he replied.

She nodded and just allowed him to slide her clothing from her body. He did ease the garments from her body as if they were made of a liquid. He had to stand her up to get her totally nude, but he did not leave her on her feet for long. Once she was naked, he lifted her back up and then took her to the large tub. He eased her into the hot water and then just leaned against the side of the tub.

"What's behind all of this?" Kikyo finally asked.

"Can a man just not do something relaxing for the woman that he would never leave? For the woman that he will always love?" he countered.

Kikyo conceded that matter without making a sound. She smiled a bit, feeling warm and it had nothing to do with the hot water that she was lounging in. The fact that Sesshomaru had stated that he would always love her was the cause for the emotions that she was feeling now. It made her confident that Sesshomaru was still hers and she was still the only woman for him. She did not have to worry about him being around Abi, as she suspected in the first place.

"Sessho?" she said in a low voice while moving closer to him. She rested her forehead against his since he was leaning low enough for her to do so.

"What is it?" he replied while reaching out and lightly caressing her shoulder with his hand.

"Will you say it?" she requested.

"What's in it for me?" he countered, sounding as he always did, but he was rather interested in the deal she might be willing to strike.

"I'll let you join me in the bath."

"Hmm…" he seemed to consider the proposal. "The terms seem adequate."

"Adequate? Is that all?" she asked, trying to sound insulted, but she sounded more amused than anything else.

"Yes, adequate."

"Well, then, you've made the deal," she pointed out.

"I have," he stated. "I love you," he said the words that she wanted to hear very soundly. It sounded more than honest. It sounded like a stone cold fact that nothing would ever disprove.

Kikyo smiled because now she felt completely better. He knew those words would brighten her considerably, especially since he did not say them very often. Neither of them were big on declarations of love when they were in their right frames of mind. They both did enjoy hearing them, though.

They exchanged a quick kiss before Kikyo moved away, silently yielding to her part of the bargain by making space for her lover. Sesshomaru took her up on the offer and stripped away his clothing to join her in the tub. The bath was more than large enough for both of them to fit in and be comfortable. And there they lounged together, peaceful and content.

----(New day)

Kikyo was in a rather good mood until she got to work. She found herself being blocked out of the medical center when she went to the front door. It was Suikotsu's friends and she knew that they were waiting for her. The smallest one among them, Bankotsu stood in front of the others. She suspected that he was leader of the gang, even though no one had ever said as much.

"Kikyo, you know, it's getting down right annoying that you won't go out with Suikotsu," Bankotsu stated, as if it was any of his business.

"I don't see why he even bothers. She's so creepy," Jakotsu commented, not caring that he spoke loud enough for the world to hear.

Kikyo, like every other person that had seen the gang and had not interacted with them much, was not sure just what Jakotsu was. She was leaning toward a man, but Jakotsu was dressed just as ambiguously as his voice seemed to be. It did not help matters that Jakotsu was wearing lipstick. Maybe he was just a very eccentric man.

"Jakotsu, let me handle this one," Bankotsu said.

"Well, I'm just saying," the effeminate male replied.

"Listen, all of you, first of all, what I do is none of your business. Second, I need to get to work, so move out of my way. Third, this is by far the most tasteless thing I have ever seen and believe me, I've seen many tasteless things in my life," Kikyo informed them. She could not get over the fact that they just hung around outside of a clinic.

"You can't talk to us like that," Renkotsu growled. He was wearing a scarf on his head and looking rather offended by her words.

"I just did. Now, move out of my way," Kikyo ordered in her usual tone, but it was clear that it was a command that she expected obeyed.

Bankotsu seemed to think on it before surprisingly stepping out of her way. He looked amused by her, but she did not bother to think of the reason for that. She had work to get to and she was going to get to it. She entered the medical center.

"Why'd you just let her go?" Renkotsu inquired, speaking to their leader.

Bankotsu just waved the question off. He let Kikyo go because he liked her moxie. She had guts and he respected that. He could see the attraction to her and he was going to make sure that they kept getting on her case until she agreed to go out with Siukotsu. He did wonder why she was putting up such a struggle. He figured that he might want to look into that one.

--------------

Sesshomaru had decided to meet Abi and took her out for lunch since he had work that morning. She also had things to do that morning, so it worked out; she was on a business vacation, after all. After lunch, he took her out to a show. It was not a show that he wanted to see, but he considered that she might enjoy the production and he was trying to be polite to her. It seemed that he had made the right move because she did like the show.

He tried to ignore the looks that she gave him through out the day. He could tell lust when he saw it, and smelled it actually. He could only hope that he was not putting himself into a horrible situation by doing what his father told him to do. And he soon found out the answer to that.

Once again, he walked Abi to her room when their day together was done. She opened the door and invited him again. He once again declined, but she was not trying to hear that. She grabbed Sesshomaru by the collar and pulled him down to her level, placing a raw kiss to his mouth. Damn it, Sesshomaru hollered in his mind.

--------------

Next time: find out just how screwed Sesshomaru is because of this.


	7. Into the fire

I don't own these characters.

7: Into the fire

Sesshomaru was in trouble, real trouble for once in his life. Serious, he-might-get-killed-over-it trouble. What was the problem? Well, for starters a woman was kissing him and that woman was not Kikyo. To make matters worse, it was Princess Abi and she had his shirt in a death grip that he probably would have to rip the cloth to escape. And if he ripped the shirt, he was definitely going to have just a more unbelievable story to tell his beloved when he finally got home. He was so screwed!

"Now," Abi said as she pulled away from the dog demon. "Maybe you'd like to come in," she repeated her offer that he had already turned down.

"I've got matters to attend to," Sesshomaru replied in the most normal tone that he could muster, which took all of his self-control and yet he still sounded robotic as he spoke.

The silver-haired male turned and walked off before the bird demon could say anything further to him. He wiped his mouth like a small child would as he entered the stairwell; yes, he was not even going to wait for the elevator. He tried scrapping his tongue off his front teeth, even though she had not dared put her tongue in his mouth. Still, he could taste her in his mouth and he did not like it. He needed something to eat or drink as soon as possible.

He went and brought something to drink in the hotel lobby before going out to his car. He started it, but he did not move. What the hell was he supposed to tell Kikyo? Should he tell Kikyo? It was not like she would be able to sense that the foul bird had violated his space and stolen a kiss. But, what if she did find out? And then she would have the added fact that he had not said anything? Oh, god, he was so screwed!

--------------

Abi could not believe that she had just practically thrown herself at that filthy mutt and he had the nerve to cut and run on her. That arrogant, effeminate-looking bastard! She practically snarled; she hated him! How dare he deny her? He was such a mutt.

That was actually their history together. She would always want to do something, although nothing like what she wanted to do at the moment considering before they had only been children. But, the point was that he never wanted to do what she wanted to do. That was why she hated him. He never treated her like the princess that she was.

She would show him. She was not going to put up with him just treating her any way that he felt like. She went and grabbed her phone and just as she was about to call her mother to inform her that Sesshomaru was being a jerk as usual, but she stopped herself before she could press a button.

She realized that she was childish. She was being immature, just like Sesshomaru thought she was. She was planning on telling on him; it sounded like she was toddler. She could see why he declined on her invite in. She was acting like a spoiled brat.

Abi sighed and began dialing on her cell phone. She was not calling her mother. She was calling Sesshomaru. His voicemail picked up instead of him, so she decided on leaving a message, just telling him to call her back, so that they could talk about what happened.

--------------

Sesshomaru glanced down at his cell phone to see who was calling him. The moment that he saw it was Abi, that gave him the strength to at least drive away from her hotel. He did not bother to answer, not wanting to bother with her at the moment. No, right now, he truly detested the featherbrained bitch, as he now believed she was. He refused to be bothered by her anymore.

As he drove home, he still did not know what he was going to tell Kikyo, if he was going to tell her anything at all. He suddenly wished that he could call someone and ask their advice. He would not think to call Inuyasha for several reasons; the first being that he as the older brother was to only give out advice to the younger and never take advice from his little brother. The second, almost equally important reason was that he really thought that his brother was a moron, especially when it came to relationships considering how much his woman yelled at him.

Well, Inuyasha was crossed off the list. He knew better than to even consider calling his father. First of all, he was fairly certain that the older demon would swear that it was all his fault for whatever reason, as if Abi could do no wrong. His father would then more than likely start harping on him about ruining his relationship with Kikyo and they would never get around to what he should do in the situation that he was in.

His stepmother came to mind for only a second. She came to mind because she was human and she would be able to help him understand Kikyo's mindset toward his actions. But, then he remembered that Kikyo was a peculiar human at best and he doubted that anyone would able to help him understand how she might take the bit of news that he had.

He did not even consider his sister, even though he thought that Rin was a strange little human herself. He did not want her opinion because she was young and, well, she was his little sister. He did not want to know if she had an opinion on relationships beyond what she saw from their parents and her brothers.

He had one last thought and that was talking with his mother. He could just imagine that conversation in his head and it was not pleasant. His mother would tease him relentlessly about being like his father for being with a human; he knew that as a fact because that was what she did when he called her and first told her about Kikyo. She also did it whenever he did bother with calling her and the few times he had gone to see her since being with Kikyo. Sometimes, he was not sure which parent irked him more with the way they behaved. Some people might say that they irked him because he was just like both of them.

Sesshomaru decided that he was definitely going to handle things on his own. It would be best that way and if something went wrong, he would have no one to blame but himself and that was the way he liked things. So, now he had to figure out how he was going to handle things.

Should he tell? If he did tell, should he have a gift in hand as if apologizing, or just in case? He did not see why he should seem like he was apologizing when he had not done anything, aside for let that irksome bird have her way with him anyway. Well, that was a rather serious offense. He needed to think of something.

--------------

Kikyo was sitting on the sofa, sleeping. She had been sketching in her art book, but she nodded off. She had had a bit of a busy day. There was also a level of annoyance in that for the fact that Suikotsu's friends would not leave her alone. The short one even had the nerve to come into her office in the afternoon asking her about the picture on her desk while she was in a rush to get to a patient. It was the self-portrait that Sesshomaru did that he wanted to know so much about and she was unaware that Bankotsu had been told that it was her boyfriend from Suikotsu.

Bankotsu used that to come to conclusion that Kikyo would not go out with Suikotsu because she was dating someone, but he could not figure out why she would turn down Suikotsu to date a demon. It did not make any sense to him, especially when Suikotsu started telling him that Sesshomaru was probably cheating on Kikyo with some demon woman. It was all confusing, but Bankotsu figured out the best way to solve the problem, which was to find Sesshomaru and beat him up until he agreed to release Kikyo over to Suikotsu. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on the point of view, they did not know where to begin searching. The idea did not stop the group from harassing Kikyo when she left the medical center that evening either.

Sesshomaru found Kikyo asleep on the sofa when he came in. He smiled ever so slightly at the sight of her head tilted to the left resting on the back cushion of the couch while her right hand made sure to keep the book propped up in her lap and her left hand made sure not to drop the pencil. He wondered if such feats counted as practicing.

He carefully removed her pencil from her hand and placed it on the coffee table. He then took the book from her with just as much caution, closing it and then placing it next to the pencil. He leaned down once more and then collected Kikyo into his arms. She immediately snuggled up into his chest, but then suddenly she went rigid. The movement worried him and then she woke up, which worried him more.

Kikyo woke up because something just felt…odd. There was something strange about Sesshomaru. He seemed tense to her and that had disturbed her sleep. As she turned to look at him, the expression in his golden eyes only seemed to enhance the weird air surrounding him. Something was going on, she believed.

"Sessho, you can put me down," she informed him.

"Are you sure?" he inquired.

"Yes, I'm awake now," she pointed out.

Sesshomaru did not argue the obvious. He put Kikyo down, placing her back on the sofa. He was about to walk away, not sure what he was going to do, but he did not want to be around her for the moment since it seemed like she could just tell something was wrong. But, as he was about to walk off, she grabbed his hand, which halted him immediately. He did not turn to look at her.

"Sessho," she said because he was acting rather peculiar.

"I'll order us some dinner," he replied, still not bothering to look at her.

"Sit down," she requested.

"But—" he attempted to protest, but she was not trying to hear that.

"Sit down," she repeated, her tone still the same as always, but for some reason that was beyond him, he sat down on that second command.

"What is it, beloved?" he inquired.

"I was going to ask you the same. Something seems to be weighing on you. If you wish to talk about it, you know I'm here for you, dearest. Did something happen at work?" she asked curiously. Usually when he seemed tense, it was because someone did something stupid as his job. She always noted that he seemed to believe that everyone at that firm was an utter imbecile.

"No, everything is going somewhat fine at work, as well as can be expected anyway," he answered.

"Then did something happen between you and Princess Abi?" she inquired because acting as the bird demon's escort seemed like a second job for him and also seemed just as annoying as his actual job.

Sesshomaru tried his best to not react to that question, but he subtly glanced away. She noticed, so she knew that she was now on the right track. She wondered what happened that he was so reluctant to speak on.

"Sessho, what happened? You didn't do anything to her, did you?" Kikyo inquired.

"No, I did nothing to her," he insisted with a bit more force than he meant to voice, which of course, only roused his beloved's suspicions all the more.

"Sessho, what happened?" she repeated, now in a more stern tone because she hated what was coming to mind and he better clear things up quickly or they were going to have a little problem. Well, no, they were going to have a _major_ problem if he did not explain things.

Sesshomaru took a breath while wondering where he should start. Should he just tell the facts of the matter? He never realized how bothersome it was to love a woman until now. Now, he had to think of the best way to broach a subject instead of speaking plainly as he usually would. He had to put what occurred in a manner that prevented a fight and that left his dearest one knowing that he did not mean for it to happen. How troublesome.

He stared at Kikyo and then found his mouth speaking with about his brain's consent. "Abi kissed me," he admitted. When he heard the words, his mind demanded to know what the fuck his mouth thought it was doing! Was it trying to get him killed?! If so, it was doing a damn fine job, he bet.

"She kissed you?" Kikyo asked to be sure she heard right.

"Yes, she kissed me."

"And where were you when it was happening?" she inquired.

Sesshomaru was confused by the question, mostly because he was still reeling from the way his mouth just started moving without his permission. "What do you mean where was I? I was there, of course," he answered. Where else would he be?

"And you mean to tell me that you couldn't stop her from doing such since you were right there?" she asked, rather calmly, he noticed. He knew that was not particularly good sign, but then again, he doubted anything in his current situation would be a good sign from his beloved.

"I didn't see it coming," he replied.

"You mean, you, the mighty Sesshomaru, the man that knows everything, cannot tell when a woman is about to kiss you?" she asked, her voice bordering on incredulous now.

"It happened rather fast," he defended himself, like a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest, he silently noted.

"So fast that you could not back away? How tall is this woman?"

The question threw him, seeming to come out of nowhere. "Your height," he answered.

"I see, so you would have had to bend down to kiss her then," Kikyo pointed out.

"I didn't kiss her. She kissed me."

"You would have had to be bent down for it to happen, giving your consent more or less if that is the case."

"Beloved—" he started to say.

"No," she cut him off and she was about to get up from the sofa because she did not want to be in the same room with him any more. Maybe her sister was right, she considered; maybe it was a mistake to just let him wander around with the city with that demon princess. He had been lying to her, she believed. He had been lying about everything, as far as she was concerned.

"Kikyo," he said and he grabbed her before she could get away. He yanked her down to him, catching her in his arms before she collided harshly with his chest and then he held her gently to him. She struggled against him, but he held her tightly.

"Let me go, liar," she hissed in fury. There was no pain in her voice, but it was there in her chocolate eyes. She looked absolutely hurt by what she had been told.

"Kikyo."

"Liar."

"Beloved, listen to me," he practically growled.

"So that you can lie to me again?" she countered.

"I have not lied. I love you and you know that, so listen to me. She caught me off guard by grabbing hold of my shirt and holding onto it. She pulled me down to her and if I had pulled away, I would have torn my clothing and I doubted that you'd believe me. I didn't kiss her back and I left as soon as I could—"

"What, after satisfying yourself with her?" Kikyo inquired with venom in her voice.

"I would never, ever sate myself with someone other than you," he vowed. "You're the only woman for me, you know that. I hate that damned bird and I swear to you that I'll stop even being around her. I will call my father right now and tell him that I can't do this job anymore. I will never do something like this ever again. I never meant to hurt you," he swore.

Kikyo could only shake her head and she continued to try to get away from him. He had kissed another woman. After everything that they had been through, he had to go and ruin it…again. She was not going to give him another chance; it would only give him a chance to emotionally wound her again.

"Please stay with me," he suddenly begged, knowing that she was still thoroughly upset with him. He was whispering to her. "Please don't leave me. I'll do anything to make this up to you. I didn't mean for it to happen, but I swear I'll do anything to keep you by my side. Stay with me, please. Please."

"You've already done this before," she reminded him. He had not exactly begged as he was doing at the moment.

"Please," he said desperately. If he lost his beloved because of that damned bird, he was going to kill Abi and her whole clan. It would be the only way for him to even remotely begin feeling compensated for his loss.

"Let me go," she ordered.

"Please," he repeated and he started saying it as if it was a chant. He held her tighter, as if saying that he would never let her go with his embrace.

"Release me," she commanded, a little less forcefully that time around. The way that he was holding her was foreign to her. It was almost as if he was afraid that if he let her go, she would vanish altogether.

"I cannot," he informed her.

"Sessho, you're behaving immaturely," she stated.

"I cannot let you go. I love you and I want you to believe me. I would never intentionally hurt you or do anything to jeopardize what we have. This is precious to me, you're precious to me. You know that, so believe me when I say I love you now like you believed it when I said it last night," he replied.

Kikyo had believed him last night; it was before she knew that he was kissing another woman. She hated that his actions now were getting to her, though. He seemed so sincere, but then again, he seemed that way always and yet he had kissed another woman. How could a kiss be a mistake as he was trying to make it seem? It was a kiss.

He should have been able to avoid Abi if he did not want to be kissed, Kikyo believed. He should have pulled away, shirt be damned. He should have done something! Anything to not allow that woman to touch him, she thought as tears gathered in her eyes. She realized with a start that she was going to cry in front of him, which she had been trying her best not to do.

He smelled her tears and he doubted that he had ever felt so crushed in all of his life. He had caused her tears and that made him feel like the lowest of the low. He buried his head in her hair and she noted a shift in the way that he was holding her. She was not too sure what it was, but he was holding her differently now.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen, but I'm so sorry, beloved. I'm truly sorry," he whispered to her in a tender tone.

She hated that she believed him. She wrapped her arms around him and started to cry into his chest. She detested how she was behaving too, but that did not stop her. She was in so much emotional agony that she had to let it out. He continued to apologize to her in a low tone while embracing her and nuzzling his face in her hair. And they stayed like for an undetermined amount of time.

"What do you want me to do, beloved? Call my father and tell him that I can't show Abi around anymore?" he asked after a long moment of silence.

"Would he accept that?" she countered.

"I don't know. We can call him and see," he replied.

Kikyo nodded to agree to that. He went into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He saw that Abi had left him a message. He sighed at that and contemplated deleting it, but he decided against that. He called his father's house and found that the older demon was not home. He then called his father's cell phone and found that the older demon was also not picking up.

"Damn him," Sesshomaru huffed.

"He didn't answer?" Kikyo guessed.

"No. I'll try him again later. I'm very sorry about this, beloved."

"You don't have to keep apologizing," she replied quietly.

"I do. Why is it that my perfection is always marred when it comes to you?" he wondered aloud. "I never want to hurt you and yet I have done it twice in our relationship. It is a bit disheartening," he confessed in a tone matching his statement.

"At least you didn't mean it this time," she commented.

"Doesn't very much excuse my mistake."

"No, it doesn't," she concurred.

Sesshomaru sighed and began caressing Kikyo's back. He was not sure what he was going to do. He supposed that it was good that Kikyo was not ordering him to let her go anymore.

"I'll make this up to you, love. I promise," he whispered, even though neither of them knew how he was going to do that.

Through out the night, Sesshomaru did attempt to get in touch with his father to step away from his job, but his father was not picking up a phone and he was not at home if someone did answer the house phone. His luck had to be damned, the dog demon considered. At least, when it came to Kikyo, his luck had to be damned. Well, maybe not totally damned since she had not left him yet.

The couple was quiet for most of the night. They ordered out for dinner and had a silent meal together. The silence was tense, but they were trying to bear through it. The quiet was disturbed by Sesshomaru's cell phone going off. He went to answer it and frowned when he saw who was calling him.

"Aren't you going to answer it?" Kikyo inquired.

"It's her," he grumbled.

Kikyo seemed rather interested now and he decided to take the call. He put it on speaker, just to show that he was not trying to hide anything from her. He then greeted Abi with a deadpan, almost hostile, "what?"

"Damn you, you arrogant dog! Why didn't you call me back like I asked?" Abi demanded to know. Hours of being ignored had made her slightly upset obviously.

"And why would I do that?" he inquired.

"Because I wanted to talk to you!"

"About what?" he asked in a very bored tone. He kept his attention focused on Kikyo, noting her reactions to what was going on. She did not have any reactions yet, though, just looking interested in the conversation, but nothing further.

"I was going to apologize, but maybe I've changed my mind because you're acting like a fucking mutt!" she huffed. Kikyo arched an eyebrow to the bird demon's language and anger directed at her Sessho.

"You were going to apologize?" he asked incredulously. "Has Hell frozen over already?" he remarked.

"Oh, yeah, make fun of me, you mangy mutt. Maybe I don't even want to apologize to you anymore."

"Yes, because I wouldn't be able to live without your apology," he fired back.

"You know what, screw you! I don't even see why I bothered with kissing you. You're an asshole. I've got to be out of my mind thinking that you're good looking," she declared, as if those words were supposed to hurt him.

"Indeed," he concurred. She had to be out of her mind to think that he would do anything with her, he added mentally.

"Fine, I'm not even going to apologize to you."

"Good. I'm not even going to listen to you," he informed her and then he disconnected the call, hanging up on the princess. Kikyo was surprised by his behavior; she had never seen him act so immature and blatantly rude.

"Sessho," Kikyo started to say, but he cut her off, thinking that he knew what she was going to say.

"I'm sorry that you had to hear that," he replied.

"No, it's all right. I'm guessing that it all was just a misunderstanding. I'm getting the feeling that it's fairly easy for you two to have a miscommunication. But, I was going to suggest perhaps accepting her apology," Kikyo said.

"What the hell?" Sesshomaru could not believe what he was hearing. "This is the woman whose actions had you crying not too long ago. Do you really think I could accept her apology after all of the trouble that she caused?" he inquired.

"I'm going to venture a guess out here, even though I don't know the whole story, that she did not know exactly how much trouble she was going to cause. Did you tell her that you're in a relationship?"

Sesshomaru looked away. "No."

"Perhaps she wouldn't have done such a thing if she knew. Did you say anything afterwards?"

"I merely left when she was done. I didn't want to discuss my life with her. I don't even like talking to her," he pointed out.

"Perhaps you can talk everything out with her."

"You want me to stay hanging around her?" he asked incredulously.

"I just think that you should talk things out with her. Perhaps the both of you can act like adults when you do and things might turn out better," she answered.

Sesshomaru exhaled loudly, showing his frustration with that suggestion. He honest and truly did not want to deal with Abi anymore after the stunt that she pulled, but he supposed that he might as well go through with it since he could not get in touch with his father and he figured that it might somehow correct things between him and Kikyo. He sighed.

"I'll talk to her tomorrow. With luck, she'll be calm by then," Sesshomaru decided. Things had better work out or he was just going to take it out on Abi.

--------------

Next time: after talking things out with Abi, Sesshomaru is annoyed to find out that she actually wants to meet Kikyo. How well is that going to go?


	8. Now hear this

I don't own these characters.

8: Now hear this

Sesshomaru was annoyed. He was annoyed because he had to go speak things out with Abi after she had invaded his space and stolen a kiss from him. He had to go talk with the bird demon because that was what his beloved wanted him to do. Usually, if someone wanted something from him, he felt that it was his decision whether to comply or not, but with Kikyo it was different, especially since he had broken her heart last night. He figured that if he and Abi could clear things up like Kikyo wanted, then there was a chance that he would be out of trouble. Although he still had plans for all kinds of "forgive me" gifts.

He now hoped that the bird demon was ready to be mature and rational. She had been quite angry when she called him last night and it was possible that she might still be that way. He might be forced to talk to her through her door, which would be rather upsetting to him. He was going to make her be mature about things rather than making him sink to her level, as she seemed to have the power to do if that phone call last night was any indication of how conversations with them could go. But then again, he supposed that last night was different because of everything that went on before the phone call.

He did not even want to think about what happened last night before the phone call. He just hoped that things worked out. He needed to make up for causing Kikyo tears and distress, he knew that much. The sight of her weeping on him and calling him a liar was probably going to stay with him for the rest of his life. He sighed, being in love was troublesome.

Sometimes, for very brief moments, he wished that he had never met Kikyo. The hold that she had over him was not something that he was accustomed to nor was it something that he typically liked. He did not like that someone could practically control him from basic reactions like she did. No one else could do that to him, but those moments were he had such thoughts were extremely rare.

Most of the time, he never let such ideas of desiring to have never met Kikyo enter his mind. Yes, she held some kind of power of him, but most of the time, the way that she made him feel just from a simple thing like a smile overrode any apprehensions he had about someone having some control over him. She was just a special case when it came to his notions toward people and that was why he was going to speak with Abi, even though he really did not want to do so.

He did not even know what he was going to say to her when he was in her face. He did not feel like accepting her apology since she had been out of line. It was such a lower demonic thing to do, he thought; he meant her going after him because of pure lust, even though they still despised each other. If she had just been thinking with her brain ever so slightly, they would not even be in the mess where they needed to talk. They could just be silently faking getting along and going to a show or some other nonsense. They could have been normal if she had only thought.

He got to Abi's door in the hotel. He raised his hand to knock, but he did not make it quite that far. He sighed and his hand fell to his side. He really did not want to go through with the meeting.

"Do it for Kikyo," he ordered himself. He had to do it for Kikyo.

The dog demon raised his hand again and knocked on the door. He could hear Abi walking toward the door, but she did not open it. She undoubtedly knew that it was him at the door and that would explain why it did not open. He sighed; he really, really did not want to be bothered with her immature behavior.

"Abi, open the door," he ordered.

"What do you want, mutt?" she demanded to know.

"First of all, you will address me by my name and second, you will open this door," he commanded.

"I shall do no such thing," she replied.

"Do you wish for me to rip it off then? I will not continue to speak to you through this barrier," he informed her.

Abi knew that Sesshomaru was serious when he said that he would not keep talking through the door and it was highly likely that he would just rip the door right off. Part of her was tempted to just let him do that and once he did, she would knock the crap out of him, but that would not get them anywhere, aside from scolded by their parents anyway. Besides, that would be the childish thing to do and she was trying to be more mature around Sesshomaru, like she was with most other people. He seemed to bring out the worst in her, she thought.

"What do you want?" Abi inquired again, but that time she was opening the door while asking.

"We need to talk," Sesshomaru replied as he looked down at the bird demon.

"Can you come in for that or are we going to have to talk in the hallway since we both know how against you are crossing that threshold," she remarked.

"If we can be civilized about all of this, I'll come in and we can sit down and talk this out," he stated.

Abi looked him up and down with distain in her eyes before nodding, agreeing that they could be civil about things. They were good at pretending to get along, after all. She opened the door wider and motioned for him to step inside, which he did. She gently shut the door, even though she did have the wicked idea of slamming the thing just to hurt Sesshomaru's little doggy ears.

"So, should I offer you a drink or something?" Abi inquired.

Sesshomaru shook his head to decline; it was only just the afternoon, so he was not looking to drink. He kept his eyes off of Abi, mostly because she was still in her pajamas, which left very little to the imagination. He did not hold it against her since he was the one that was intruding on her time, but she could have had the decency to put on a robe or something when she knew that it was him at the door, he thought.

Abi had not bothered with putting on a robe because she did not care about Sesshomaru seeing her in the skimpy red nighty that she was wearing. She was not going to cater to him in any way after he was being a jerk. She had tried to be nice to him, but he made it impossible, so she was only going to do the minimum in order to be "civil" toward him and call it a day.

"Have you been sleeping?" Sesshomaru inquired since she was still in her pajamas.

"Yes, believe it or not, I go out on my own after you drop me off," she informed him. She had done some partying after he treated her so curtly in her opinion because she needed something to forget about him.

"That's rather dangerous," he pointed out, but it was obvious that he did not really care.

"Yes, I know. What, worried about how much trouble you'll be in with your father should something happen to me?" she teased him.

"It's no great concern of mine. You're a grown woman."

"Indeed, which is why I told my mother I didn't need an escort in the first place," she stated soundly.

Sesshomaru shrugged; he supposed that she had a point, but to be honest, he could understand why her mother had arranged for an escort. He knew that if Rin was a grown woman, but going overseas, and was going some place where he knew people, he would arrange for her to have someone show her around. He was willing to bet that Rin would be offended by the action, just like Abi.

"So, are you going to have a seat or just start talking? Do something," Abi said.

"Look, I'm going to take some, at least half of the blame, for what happened yesterday," Sesshomaru informed her.

"Blame?" she echoed. "You make it sound like something wrong," she commented in an amused tone. It was very rare for a demon to consider something wrong, especially something involving lust.

"Not wrong, just a mistake on both our parts."

"How so?" she asked curiously.

"I noticed your intentions toward me and I did nothing to correct them. I'm not interested in you in such a way," he stated in his usual tone, which offended her a bit.

"Why not? What, are you strictly into men?" she inquired.

"Will you cut it out with the homosexual remarks? I have never even considered dating men," he told her.

"Then what? Are you trying to say there's something wrong with me? I'm not attractive or worth your lust?" she demanded to know, getting more angry with each passing second because of how she was taking his statement.

"It's not that, Abi," he said through gritted teeth. He supposed that if he was not deeply in love with his woman, he would look at the bird demon differently. Maybe he would have even taking her up on her offer, but he was a different person now that he was with Kikyo. There was nothing that was going to change that as far as he was concerned.

"Then what is it?" She was close to screaming now. It would seem that his whole explanation was an affront to her.

Sesshomaru sighed and hoped that his next words actually meant something to her. If it turned out that they did not, he was definitely going to have to quit the task assigned to him. He just would not be able to take the chance anymore.

"I'm in a relationship," he informed her. His words seemed to knock her back. She just had not been expecting them.

"A relationship?" she echoed as if she did not even know what that was.

"Yes, I am in a relationship."

Abi was speechless for the moment. Her mother had not said anything about him being in a relationship. She had only gone on about Sesshomaru more than likely being an attractive nobleman, like his father, and all sorts of other nonsense. The princess was not sure how to take the information.

"You actually found a woman that would put up with you for an extended period of time. It is shocking," the demon female remarked before she even knew it. It would seem that she was taking things rather well.

"To you and everyone else that's heard about it. Now, if you respect that and don't try anything further, I have no reason to break our earlier deal," he replied.

"Well, I suppose that would explain why you ran away from here like a kicked puppy. What's she like?" Abi asked curiously. She guessed that she could take the news rather lightly because she had only wanted carnal pleasure from Sesshomaru and nothing more as far as his body went. She could get that from any good-looking demon and she would not have to put up with the annoyance that came along with it like she would with Sesshomaru.

"I'd rather not say," he informed her.

"Why? What's wrong with saying anything? Had you spoke on her earlier I wouldn't have bothered with that not so subtle attempt on your false virtue," she quipped with a teasing smile.

"Am I to believe that you are so honest?"

"Indeed. You're not so desirable to me, Lord Sesshomaru, to where I would ruin a relationship for one night with you," she commented, using his title to playfully mock him.

Sesshomaru only rolled his eyes, but he supposed that he could understand her. It was a bit damaging to his pride that she would say such a thing, but he knew that with Abi, she was looking to target his pride and destroy it in some manner anyway. She was not the usual type of female that he was accustomed to dealing with, but he supposed that was fine. It would make things easier…in a way anyway. At least he would probably not have to bother with her attempting anymore intimate sessions with him.

"I suppose that's good to know considering you're not so desirable to me to where I would ruin my relationship," he retorted.

"All right then," she replied, surprisingly not taking any offense to his comment. "Then we're even, so how about you tell me about her and what makes her so worthwhile?" she requested.

The dog demon waved the question off. "Why don't you just get dressed and we leave?" he proposed.

"Maybe I will when you tell me about this female you're with," she said. She felt like she had things stacked in her favor, so she was in control of the situation.

The golden-eyed demon sighed. She might be different from the usual type of female that he was accustomed to dealing with, but she had some similarities with them and that would be that she was nosy. He supposed that he might have to feed her some information just to get her moving; or he could just leave and cut his losses.

"She's a very cultured woman who doesn't walk around in nightgowns in front of strange men," he commented.

"While you are strange, I'm skeptical about you being a man, so I guess what I'm doing is all right. Come on, Sesshomaru. Don't be such a prick about things. Tell me about your woman."

"Well, she certainly has a cleaner mouth than you," he stated.

"What's she do for a living, be a burden like you?" she countered.

"She's a doctor," he answered flatly.

"You don't seem very open about her. Is she deformed in some way?" she teased, thinking that would get to him.

"She is perfect," he declared.

"Oh, really? I'd like to meet this perfect woman," she decided right then and there. She would like to see what kind of woman could put up with Sesshomaru long enough to want to be in a relationship with him.

"No," he stated plainly.

"Oh, come on, Sesshomaru. Let me meet this woman. I won't say anything about the kiss and I won't bother you anymore," she promised with a smile that did not incline him to believe that she was telling the truth.

"You being around bothers me. Are you going to suddenly leave after you meet her?" he inquired.

"What happened to being civil?" she asked with a playful pout.

Sesshomaru growled and tried to consider the consequences of Abi meeting Kikyo. She could see that Kikyo was human and decide to be highly disrespectful to her, especially since he knew that her clan of bird demons looked at humans as monkeys more than higher beings. He would then have to be harsh with Abi and she would probably run to tell her mother, as she used to do.

He doubted that Kikyo would be too offended by Abi if she did act out. Kikyo knew how to take and dish out anything someone threw her way. Still, he would rather save her the trouble having to deal with an irksome demon insulting her just because she was human.

"Abi," he said in an impatient tone.

"Don't worry so much, Sesshomaru. I'll behave myself," she vowed.

"Abi, you could put it in writing and I still wouldn't believe you," the dog demon stated.

"Well, if that's the case, I guess we'll spend the day standing here. Maybe I'll do a strip tease for you," she remarked and began pulling up her nightgown slowly.

"Go get dressed and we'll go to lunch," he said.

"With her?" Abi asked while continuing on with her actions.

"Yes, with her," he answered.

"Okay. Now, wasn't that easy?" Abi quipped with a demonic smile.

Sesshomaru only snorted in anger and the bird demon went to change. He sighed and went into his pocket for his cell phone. He was going to warn Kikyo at least that she was about to meet Abi and he also wanted to know where she was going for lunch. Oh, he was going to have to put up with Midoriko too, he realized.

"Hello, beloved," Kikyo answered her phone.

"Hello, angel. Are you still at work?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"Yes, but I'm about to go to lunch with my sister. Is there something you want?"

"Well, Abi wishes to meet you…" he stated as if those words pained him to even speak.

"Meet me?" She accidentally sounded as surprised as she was.

"Yes, meet you. So, where are you and Midoriko having lunch? We'll meet you there, if that's all right," he informed her.

"Well, I suppose it should be all right. I might have to tell Midoriko that we'll be dining with demons, but I doubt she'll mind. I'll also tell her not to tease you too much," Kikyo commented and he knew that she was smiling, which she was.

"Teasing is the least I'm worried about," he muttered. He could already imagine the accusing words that would come from Midoriko's mouth and the looks that he was probably going to get from both sisters when he joined them with Abi at his side.

"I suppose so. Well, let me call her. We're going to the same café that we always do," she informed him.

"All right. We'll see you there," he replied.

"All right."

They disconnected the call at the same time; they were not in the habit of bidding each other farewell if they were both done talking. Sesshomaru sighed, believing that he was about to have the most uncomfortable lunch possible. Three women, all of them against him in some shape for their own reasons. The fates had to hate him.

--------------

Kikyo was sitting at her desk and she put her cell phone down. She sighed; she was not too sure if she wanted to meet the woman that had kissed her Sessho. She guessed that it would be all right. She would be able to see how Sesshomaru behaved with Abi in person and hopefully make a sound, rational decision on how she felt about Sesshomaru being around the bird demon.

She checked her watch to see what time it was and if she should bother with calling her sister. She thought that she might have to just inform Midoriko in person if it was late enough, but no, she saw that she had time. Midoriko was probably still at work, so she decided to call.

"Yes, Kikyo?" Midoriko answered her phone.

"Hello, sister. I was just calling about our lunch plans," Kikyo said.

"What about them? Are you canceling?"

"Oh, no. Of course not. We're going to be joined by Sesshomaru and the woman that he's showing around. Is that all right with you?"

Midoriko sighed. She would have no problem if Sesshomaru joined them for lunch. She had enough things in common with Sesshomaru to hold a decent conversation with him, even though they hardly agreed on things. Still, he was polite toward her and she was the same toward him, even though they did let a few snaps sneak any discussions that they were having. But, she did not want to meet with an unfamiliar demon.

"I suppose I can deal with it as long as this demon minds her manners," Midoriko commented. She sincerely hoped the demon did not do anything inappropriate towards Sesshomaru while she was sitting with them or she felt like she might have to fry both of them.

"Well, one can hope," Kikyo replied.

"I suppose. See you in a while then."

"All right."

The call was disconnected and Kikyo turned her attention back to her desk. She did not have any more appointments until late that afternoon, so she was trying to catch up on her paperwork yet again. She was also organizing her files in a more manageable system. She made sure to keep careful track of the time because she wanted to be outside waiting for her sister when Midoriko did show up.

She wanted to be outside because Midoriko now hated coming into the medical center because it meant that she had to walk passed Suikotsu's friends and she thoroughly detested those pests. They harassed Midoriko, wanting to know why her sister refused to go out with Suikotsu when he was an excellent fellow. She had once threatened to call the police on them and that earned her just about the heartiest laugh that she had ever witnessed. Kikyo suspected that if Midoriko had to put up with them a little longer, she would skip calling the police and handle the whole lot herself; Kikyo could understand that.

She finished up her work and went outside to wait for Midoriko, who showed up hardly a minute after her little sister came out. They greeted each other with friendly smiles and were off to the café that they usually went to. They arrived before Sesshomaru and his guest, which actually suited them just fine.

--------------

Abi noticed that Sesshomaru seemed rather tense as they strolled down the street, heading toward where they were going to have lunch. She guessed that he thought she was going to act out once she met his girlfriend. She really had no desire to do such a thing. She was not interested in wrecking a relationship. She had better things to do with her time.

She decided to stop bothering with him and wondered where they were going to eat. He had not said anything about it, but she guessed that it was going to be some place fancy. He seemed very into elegance and expense when they went out to restaurants, which was fine by her. It was how she was used to eating when she at home and out on the town with someone.

She also wondered what Sesshomaru's girlfriend looked like. She dared considered that the female might look better than she did, but she let that go, believing that no one could rival her looks. And then she got a big shock as Sesshomaru stopped by a little café and was greeted by two humans.

"Beloved," Sesshomaru said while bending down to hug Kikyo while Abi stared on in disbelief.

"Sessho," Kikyo replied while returning the embrace. They released each other and then the dog demon turned his attention to her sister.

"Midoriko," Sesshomaru said flatly.

"Sesshomaru," she replied just as flatly.

"Allow me to introduce Princess Abi of the demon bird clan. Abi, this is Kikyo and her elder sister Midoriko," Sesshomaru introduced all of the women.

The sisters looked at Abi, who appeared to be dumbfounded. They guessed that Sesshomaru had not informed her that she would be dining with humans. Abi's shock went beyond the fact that they were eating with humans, but the fact that Sesshomaru had hugged one and referred to her as "beloved." Sesshomaru, the most arrogant demon that she had ever met, was with a human? It was unimaginable and yet she was seeing signs of it in reality. Her mind could not totally grasp that, it seemed.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Kikyo and Midoriko said, if only to get the pleasantries out of the way and hopefully get Abi out of her frozen stupor.

"Um…yeah…" the bird demon muttered with a puzzled look in her eyes.

"Have a seat, Abi," Sesshomaru said while pulling her chair out for her, if only to get her to stop looming over everyone.

"Yes," she mumbled again and she sat down, even though she usually would have made a fuss at him for pulling her chair out. She liked messing with him, so she would have made a fuss whether he did it or did not do it, but at the moment she was just too stunned to consider playing around with him.

Sesshomaru sat down after Abi, moving his seat closer to Kikyo. He was actually slightly pleased that Abi seemed so confused. He hoped that it would keep her quiet for a little while. With luck, he would get just a couple of minutes to enjoy the company of his beloved before the noise started coming from Abi. He was not so fortunate, though. Abi recovered, giving him only a few seconds of peace.

"You're dating a human," the bird demon said incredulous and Sesshomaru sighed. He had a feeling that was the most civil thing she would say during lunch.

--------------

Next time: they all go out and, with luck, none of them kill any members of the group.


	9. A really big show

I don't own these characters.

9: A really big show

Kikyo and Midoriko glanced at each other while maintaining their composure, even though Abi seemed to be having trouble maintaining hers. They were all having lunch together, along with Sesshomaru. He was waiting for things to get out of hand, not that he had any plans on jumping in unless Kikyo was threatened in someway. He also hoped that the ladies focused more on each other and not on him, knowing if they did, he would get nothing but dirty looks through the entire meal.

"You can see that with your own eyes," Sesshomaru answered Abi's shocked question in regards to him dating a human.

"You brushed me off for a human?" Abi asked in sheer disbelief. He had picked a human over her? She was so angry with him that she felt like punching him in the throat, but she doubted that that would be a wise move.

"Brushed her off?" Midoriko echoed while glancing over to the dog demon. She cut him a look laced with venom, which he expected.

"Abi, you claimed that you would behave," Sesshomaru pointed out in a bored tone. He did not want to sound invested in anything that happened to make his suffering a minimum, but if Abi was going to act like he thought that she would, he was going to really be suffering. Hey, the two humans might actually double-team him if she said anything inappropriate and then his life would be a total Hell.

"You didn't tell me you were dating a human!" the bird demon countered in a heated tone. It was practically scandalous in her opinion for him to be with a human. It was downright disgusting in fact.

"And what is so wrong with dating a human?" Midoriko inquired with an arched ebony eyebrow, taking offense to the bird demon's tone.

"Nothing if you're a human," Abi answered as if that was obvious and Midoriko might have actually agreed if only her sister was not sitting right there with her dog demon boyfriend.

"Well, obviously, they don't share your opinion on the matter," Midoriko pointed out.

"Who would've thought a dumb dog like Sesshomaru would be open-minded enough to even try such a thing?" Abi commented with a cocky smirk on her face.

Sesshomaru's face tensed a bit. "What happened to behaving?" he inquired.

"I am. You never said I couldn't insult you, though," the bird demon replied.

Sesshomaru sighed while making a fist for a moment, which his beloved noticed. Kikyo could see that he was just angry with Abi, much in the same way that he would be with any other person that insulted him and he could not intimidate to keep the person from saying such a thing again. She put her hand on his knee to calm him down. He acknowledged that action by putting his hand on hers.

"So, what do you humans do?" Abi inquired, trying her best to be courteous. She had agreed that she would behave and maybe there was something to the humans if an arrogant bastard like Sesshomaru could stand being around them.

"Well, we mostly call each other by our names. Our parents did give them to us for a reason," Midoriko replied.

Abi was a bit taken back by Midoriko and how she just countered her without fear like that. No human back at her home would think to say such a thing to her, so she was not used to it. But, she found it oddly amusing, like when she and Sesshomaru went back and forth while they were pretending to be polite to each other.

"Right. Well, Sesshomaru has already told me that you're a doctor, Kikyo. What does the older sister do, though?" Abi asked, trying her best not to sound mocking as she had given her word that she would behave.

"I'm a lawyer," Midoriko answered and then something decidedly incredible happened; Abi found out that she had something in common with Midoriko.

As it turned out, Abi was the foremost legal mind in her mother's company and suddenly she and Midoriko found themselves having an actual conversation. Sesshomaru and Kikyo did not bother them, both too shocked to join in. Kikyo never thought that her sister would ever engage in a friendly discussion with a demon outside of someone in Sesshomaru's family, and that did not include Sesshomaru.

The dog demon was surprised by the conversation between Abi and Midoriko because he knew how both of them felt about the opposite species. Midoriko typically judged demons by the lower idiots that she ran into and Abi…well, her entire clan used to actually eat humans before that was outlawed a couple of centuries ago. So, the fact that they were calmly talking about law was a bit more than shocking. He probably would have been less surprised if a unicorn sprang out of his own head.

The couple decided to pay attention to each other when they got over their shock of the conversation going on. Sesshomaru took the hand that Kikyo hand resting on his knee and rolled her fingers around his, much like an adult would probably do with a toddler. She smiled slightly from the movement; she was also happy to see her sister getting along with someone and a demon too.

The conversation was interrupted when they decided to order lunch. It was then that Midoriko and Abi realized what they had been doing and they stopped speaking to each other just as suddenly as they had begun. Kikyo sighed because she thought that it had been so great to see her big sister casually speaking with someone, so she decided that she was going to try to get it going again.

"Abi, Sessho says he took you to the museum of Demonic Art. Did you make it to the sculptures?" Kikyo inquired. Those were her and Midoriko's favorite part of the museum and she figured that if they could start talking about that, her big sister would once again seem friendly.

"Yes, we made it there," Abi answered.

Kikyo nodded. "Did you see 'The Vanquished Beast' piece?" she inquired, hoping that she was not about to start trouble. It was her sister's favorite work and she could only hope that Abi thought highly of the work or at least could politely debate what she did not like about it.

"Is that the one with the lion rising from fire?" Abi asked curiously.

"It is," Kikyo confirmed.

Abi remembered that piece, but could not offer up much on it. She did like it, but she compared it to another piece that she recalled that was close by and Midoriko was back into the conversation, defending why "The Vanquished Beast" was certainly the better work of the two. Kikyo was inclined to agree with her sister and offered bits to support her argument. Abi was stunned by the sisters' seeming knowledge in demon art. She was a bit embarrassed that they knew more about it than she did.

"Are you two artists?" Abi inquired. It would make her feel less sheepish if the sisters turned out to be artists, even if it was just a hobby to them.

"Not any more," Midoriko answered. She used to be an artist, a long time ago, but now, she mostly just wandered museums with Kikyo, admiring the work of others.

"I mostly draw now, but I used to do sculpture work," Kikyo answered.

Abi nodded; well, she did feel a little better. Still, the fact that two humans knew more about demon culture than she did was a little bothersome. She was glad that they were not smug about their knowledge. They sort of reminded her of Sesshomaru when he was explaining pieces to her.

When they began eating their lunch, Abi and Midoriko went back to talking about law. Sesshomaru and Kikyo did not mind being excluded and discussed the possibility of going out to a show since Kikyo had met Abi now and no one had died from the meeting. Kikyo was not too sure if she could do such a thing because Sesshomaru would have to pay Abi some mind and then it would seem like they were sharing his company and it be kind of awkward. Sesshomaru had a solution for that.

"Midoriko, would you like to go to a show tonight?" Sesshomaru offered, seemingly coming out of nowhere with the idea.

"A show?" Midoriko echoed in a puzzled tone. He never invited her out anywhere, so the proposal very much threw her off balance.

"Yes, we could all go out to a show tonight. There are quite a few playing. Name a show and I'll get tickets to it," the dog demon stated.

"All go out together?" Midoriko seemed to think on it. She glanced at Abi and figured that made they could carry on other conversations if they had more time together. She was enjoying speaking with Abi, even though she was a demon. It was weird, but oddly pleasant.

Abi hoped that Midoriko accepted, which she knew was strange for someone like her, but she did not care much at the moment. She had not had a meaningful conversation outside of business since she had got into the city and she found that she missed such a thing. With Sesshomaru, he seemed to be trying to broaden her horizons with things that she never would have thought to venture near on her own and she could not really show him that she had a full functioning brain because she did not know anything about the items he showed her. When she went out on her own, she was looking to cut loose, so she did not try to get into a deep discussion with anyone. Now that she was talking with Midoriko though, she found herself wanting more.

"I should be home. I wouldn't want Kaede to be alone," Midoriko pointed out.

"I'll call Rin and tell her that Kaede should spend the night with her. They would enjoy that," Sesshomaru countered.

Midoriko could not really argue that since it was the truth. Kaede and Rin would love spending the night together, as they did that at least three times every week no matter what. She glanced over at Kikyo, who nodded, urging her sister to join them. Midoriko knew that Kikyo wanted her to get out more, but it was a bit daunting as she thought about going out. She then glanced at Abi and thought about the great talk they were having; yes, it certainly was daunting.

"All right, what would we go to see?" Midoriko inquired with a sigh and she watched her sister smile a bit.

"You pose a good question. I don't even know what's playing anymore," Sesshomaru commented.

"You just went out," Kikyo pointed out. She thought that he would know what shows were out just because he did go out recently. She supposed he was not paying too much attention because he was too busy being annoyed and immature while spending time with Abi.

"He doesn't pay attention obviously," Abi remarked.

"I've noticed that too," Midoriko teased.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Sesshomaru muttered to himself while pulling out his cell phone. He was going to find out what kind of show he could take his beloved to along with two irksome females that he considered it might have been a mistake allowing them to meet each other if they were going to now double-team him.

While Sesshomaru tried to find out what show might be suitable to all of them, Midoriko and Abi went back to talking. Kikyo jumped into that conversation when it shifted from law to the general state of the city. Abi also tried to find out what else the sisters might know about demon culture to see if they truly did eclipse her knowledge in her own people, but found that outside of demon art, they did not know too much about demon culture. She also found out that they sort of saw demons the same way that she saw humans, Midoriko more so than Kikyo. Perhaps, if they spent some more time together they could change each other's minds because they all got the general impression that there was nothing wrong with the people that they were sitting with at the moment.

"All right, ladies, I've arranged for tickets to some musical I've been led to believe you all would like. The show is at eight. If you like, we could go to dinner before or after, whichever you prefer," Sesshomaru informed them as he got off of the phone.

"You do work fast," Abi commented with a taunting smirk on her face, but he chose to ignore her tone and expression.

"What led you to believe that we would like this musical you wish to go to?" Midoriko inquired, her voice laced with intrigue, as if saying that he did not know anything about them to know what they liked.

"Perhaps a dog demon is slain in it," the bird demon quipped with an amused look in her eyes.

"That is promising," Midoriko remarked.

"All right, all right. There have been enough shots at my dear Sessho. He's trying to be hospitable to you," Kikyo said.

"That will change," Sesshomaru vowed, now getting into things because he was being attacked from two sides.

"You don't make it very easy to want to go with you to see this mystery musical," Midoriko commented, teasing more than anything else.

"Then we're even, you don't make it easy to invite you," the nobleman replied, in the same tone as Midoriko.

Kikyo rolled her eyes, knowing that they were about to get into a non-serious tirade. Midoriko and Sesshomaru tried their best to seem like they hated each other, mostly because of their beliefs toward demons and humans. They both would silently admit only to themselves that they were probably some of the best representatives of their species as far as they were concerned.

Abi watched Midoriko and Sesshomaru go back and forth with each other, very amused with them. She was not totally sure if they were being serious because their tones remained dry and aloof for the most part, which were their usual ways of speaking. She was glad to see someone else stand up to the big, bad dog demon. Sesshomaru always acted like he was so superior, so it was nice to see someone else willing to put him in his place and not take his mess.

Sesshomaru decided that he was glad for Midoriko's company, even though she had to go through the motions of insulting him. He was glad for it because she and Kikyo acted as distractions for Abi and Abi was surprisingly behaving. He was fine with them all getting along because he did not have to deal with Abi.

--------------

Sesshomaru found that his contact was right about the show. The three ladies that he was out with seemed to enjoy the show very much. He did not have much love for music with vocals in general, so he was not very interested in the show, which was fine. His attention was kept by the way that Kikyo leaned against him through out the whole production.

The seating arrangement between the four of them might have seemed strange if any of them thought on it much, in the negative anyway. They had thought on it in a positive way. Sesshomaru was on one edge with Kikyo next to him. Next to Kikyo was her sister and next to Midoriko on the other edge was Abi. Abi had decided to sit next to Midoriko, which she did not mind.

Abi had chosen to sit next to Midoriko because they had had some fine conversation during lunch and she thought that might happen again. She knew that if she sat next to Sesshomaru, they would only irk each other and she would rather not be bothered. Decent conversation also trumped getting on Sesshomaru's nerves. So far though, they were into the show and not very much speaking to each other. There was still a chance for discussion, though.

Midoriko considered that she might get to speak with Abi again like they had been doing at lunch, but now she was a little nervous about it. She tried not to think too much on it or how odd it was to speak so friendly with a demon that she had just met. It was almost unnerving because she did not even speaking friendly with Sesshomaru, comfortably maybe, but not very friendly.

Midoriko was also a bit anxious because she knew that Kikyo was going to try to push her to communicate more with Abi now that she saw how the pair got along. Kikyo did want her sister to get to know people and hopefully make a friend. She considered that Kikyo might have a point, but she still held back.

Sesshomaru took the ladies out to dinner after the show, as promised. He watched them as they discussed the show and for the first time all three of them seemed normal him. They were like three average women that had just done something that they enjoyed together. He did not say anything because he was for anything that got Abi off of his back.

Kikyo, Midoriko, and Abi were going on about the show. Midoriko and Abi hated to admit that Sesshomaru was right because they had thoroughly enjoyed the musical, which they thought said a lot because they were not very into musical productions. Still, the show had something for all of them. Midoriko and Kikyo were quite into the background scenery and the costumes while Abi thought that the motions of the actors were catching; the whole show seemed to circle around the actors having exaggerated, but fluid movements. Abi, being a bird demon, caught onto motion quite quickly and latched onto them, enjoying when the movements were smooth.

Sesshomaru listened as the women went on about the things that they liked. They all seemed fascinated by the things each was saying. He had not noticed much about the show, so he could not join in on the discussion, but it was interesting to follow because they all seemed so into what they were saying and very capable of explaining why they had been intrigued by certain items.

"Sesshomaru, what do you think you're doing?" Midoriko inquired when the meal was done.

"I think I'm paying the check obviously," he replied as he put down his debit card.

"The whole check?" she asked.

"I believe so," he answered.

"I don't want you paying for me," she informed him.

"Well, it's a bit late for that, isn't it?" he countered. "Could you not be a shrew for once? It's not like I want your immortal soul now that I've picked up the check," he pointed out.

Midoriko frowned. She honestly hated when anyone paid for her anything for her and Sesshomaru had already done so much. Kikyo knew about her sister's vicious independent streak; it was something that she suffered from as well, but she had become accustomed to allowing Sesshomaru to do things for her.

"Perhaps, sister, to repay Sessho, you would be kind enough to ride Abi to her hotel. I believe her hotel is on the way to your apartment," Kikyo offered a way for Midoriko to not feel indebted to the dog demon.

Sesshomaru was happy for that suggestion. It would mean not having to go out of his way to get Abi back to where she belonged and not having to deal with Abi anymore for the rest of the night. It was like a double win for him. Hell, he would feel indebted to Midoriko if she would do him that small favor.

Abi liked the idea too, but chose not to voice that. She would rather be around someone that she could talk to without forcing politeness most of the time and she was enjoying Midoriko's company on roughly the same level as she enjoyed Sesshomaru's company when he was not being a total ass in her opinion. It was a shame the lawyer was a human, she thought with a bit of a smirk.

"I suppose I could do this," Midoriko said in a low tone. "As long as it's all right with you," she added on, speaking to Abi.

"Perfectly fine," the princess answered, still smirking slightly.

"Then it's settled," Kikyo said with a smile. Midoriko sighed, considering that her sister might have started something that she should have left alone if that smirk Abi was wearing meant anything.

The pairs split up once the bill was paid and everything was said and done. Abi followed Midoriko to her car while Kikyo and Sesshomaru went to his automobile. The two cars rode off in opposite directions.

"So, Abi, exactly which hotel am I taking you to?" Midoriko inquired.

"Let's worry about that later. The night's still young. How about we go to a club?" Abi proposed with a bit a troublesome smile on her face.

"I cannot," Midoriko answered.

"Why not?"

"My little sister…" Midoriko started, but she was unable to finish that excuse. They were both aware that her little sister was spending the night with Sesshomaru's little sister.

"She won't be home until tomorrow, so let's go have some fun. I bet I could show you a good time," Abi commented.

"I'd rather not."

"Oh, come on. I don't bite…at least, not anymore," the bird demon quipped with a devilish smirk.

"No, I'd just rather go home."

"I'd rather you didn't, though. We've been enjoying each other's company and it would be a shame to stop so early into the night. Besides, you seem like you could use a good time. Well, beyond your paintings and art," Abi stated.

"Look—" Midoriko started to say.

"Look, if a jackass like Sesshomaru could put aside his hatred of everyone to date your sister, I can at least hang out with you. I mean, I know you're a human and I'm a demon, but we can look beyond that for the night, can't we?"

"I'm just not an out going person," Midoriko explained.

"I'll teach you. It'll be fun."

"Abi—"

"Midoriko, calm down. It's just a night out. It's not like I've asked you to share my bed," Abi remarked and the car swerved. The demon chuckled. "Careful there, Midoriko, or you'll kill us both," she commented in an amused tone.

"Listen, Abi—"

"No, no, no, Midoriko. I'm not going to take your refusal. I'll simply neglect to tell you what hotel I'm staying at and still spend the whole night with you. Midoriko, come on, we've been having fun together. Why stop it when you have the time to do something more?" the princess inquired.

Midoriko sighed. Maybe she should take advantage of having the night to herself, especially with company that she was enjoying. But, Abi was a demon and there was that remark about sharing her bed. It was a bit nerve-wrecking.

"Where did you have in mind?" Midoriko inquired. She had to be brave just once in her life, she mentally commented. Look at where being brave had gotten her sister, she told herself. Sure, she doubted that she would never make it to that level, but she might be able to find some level of happiness.

Abi smiled. She supposed that everything should be fine. After all, Midoriko was a human, so they should only do some partying. She could never do anything more with a human, right? Even though Midoriko had already proven to be one exceptional human, but she was still human. She decided to give Midoriko some directions to where they could continue on with their night.

--------------

Sesshomaru sighed in relief as he entered the apartment. He closed the door behind Kikyo as she entered. He wrapped his arms around her before she got too far from him and he pulled her to him. He nuzzled his face in her neck and smiled into her skin, tickling her slightly.

"I would think you're drunk from the way I can tell you're smiling," Kikyo commented with a slight smile of her own.

"Not drunk at all. Just…" he was not even sure what he was. He supposed that he was happy. He did not seem to be in too much trouble anymore and that pleased him. He guessed that it was all right for Kikyo to meet Abi.

"Just?"

"Nothing. Surprised, I guess. Your sister can be useful."

"Don't make fun of my sister," she playfully admonished him.

"How can I make fun of a woman that took Abi off of my hands?" he inquired.

"She doesn't seem as bad as you make her out to be, but then again, I've noticed that neither of you act the same towards others as you do each other."

"What made you come up with your sister giving Abi a ride anyway?" he asked curiously.

"They seemed to be getting along rather well. My sister could use some company, especially one that might change her opinion slightly of demons," she answered.

Sesshomaru shrugged; he figured that made some sense. He noticed that Midoriko did not do much going out, but he did not think too much of it. He could understand not wanting company from the miserable hordes that inhabited the world. He did not want to be around people for the most part either, except for Kikyo anyway.

Kikyo just hoped that Midoriko and Abi got along well enough to become friends. She really wanted her sister to just have a friend in the world. Someone that would hopefully interact with her and keep her from going out of her mind. Everyone needed some kind of social interactions, she thought.

--------------

Next time: Midoriko and Abi seem to be getting along quite well and the band of seven come back into the story. In fact, Bankotsu confronts Sesshomaru.


	10. Switching problems

I don't own these characters.

10: Switching problems

Sesshomaru was not sure what to make of what just happened, but he decided that he was not going to bother with trying to figure it out. Princess Abi had just called his cell phone; he was at work. And she requested that they have lunch with Kikyo and Midoriko again. He thought that was odd because Abi detested humans, yet she wanted to meet with two for lunch again. He had agreed because the lunch before had gone somewhat well, especially for a first meeting between females that should have thoroughly detested each other for various reasons.

He called Kikyo to let her know that Abi wanted them all to have lunch together, which she thought was fine. She then had to pass the word onto Midoriko. She hoped that Midoriko had a favorable reaction to the news because it would show that her big sister was trying to be social beyond the superficial level she generally worked at. She truly thought that her sister needed to be more social.

"Yes?" Midoriko answered her phone.

"Hello, big sister. Sesshomaru called to say that Abi has suggested that we all have lunch again today," Kikyo reported.

"I suppose that's fine," Midoriko replied, making sure to keep her tone as always.

"All right. How was the ride last night?" the younger sister inquired rather curious. She gathered that everything went all right since Midoriko had agreed to lunch with the bird demon again, but she would like some details on the matter.

"It was…decent," Midoriko answered.

"Decent?"

"Well, it was only a ride. It's not like it can go horribly wrong or anything like that," the eldest pointed out.

"You make a point. Well, I shall see you at lunch."

"All right."

The sisters disconnected the call and Kikyo was about to go handle a patient, but Suikotsu came to her door before she could escape her office. He greeted her and she returned the greeting. He tried to strike up a conversation, but she informed him that she had patient waiting, which he only understood for the moment it seemed because as soon as she was done with her patient, he was back to trying to speak with her.

Kikyo did not want to be rude or anything, so she conversed with Suikotsu for a few minutes. She was vague in almost everything that she told him, though, which should have been a clue that she really did not wish to talk to him. But, her vagueness was also due to the things that he was asking her about. He wanted to know about what sorts of things she liked, such as flowers and candy and she was not trying to encourage him by telling him those things. After all, if she told him such things, she was certain that those things would certainly be in her office one day and she did not want gifts from the doctor. She did not want to put herself in that kind of predicament.

She did not understand why he continued to pursue her. She had already informed him that she had a boyfriend. Why was it that he could not respect that? It was something that she found distasteful and clashed with his affable personality and she thought that she might have to tell him that if he continued to carry on as he was. It seemed like it would be the only way to get him to cease and desist.

Kikyo decided to stop thinking about it and wondered on Abi's request for them all to have lunch again. She was hoping that Abi wanted to spend time with her sister again. She thought that it was a very good sign that her sister had accepted that the demon princess wanted to join them for lunch again. Perhaps, her sister had made a friend, someone to share experiences with on the same level as Midoriko and who was not her sister. Kikyo smiled at the thought because she felt it was about time that her sister made a friend outside of their family.

--------------

Midoriko and Kikyo were sitting at the café table, waiting for Sesshomaru and Abi. The sisters had already ordered drinks. Kikyo was circling her finger around the glass of her lemonade while Midoriko watched the miserable habit and sipped her drink. She could not understand why or how Kikyo twirled her finger around glass, even though she was going to drink from a straw. Still, sometimes, she had witnessed Kikyo do it with a cup that she was going to put her lips on.

"I can't be you're allowed to give health advice," Midoriko commented, a hint of humor in her even voice.

"I suppose we're even considering with some of the things you do, I can't believe you're allowed to give legal advice," Kikyo replied; there was also a touch of amusement underlying her usual tone.

"Well, you know the saying, do as I say, not as I do," the eldest remarked with a small smirk.

"This is why you secretly get along so well with Sesshomaru," the doctor remarked.

Midoriko did not seem to find that quite funny. She was about to say something, but she saw her sister's eyes leave her and go upward. She turned slightly, knowing who was coming.

"Beloved," Kikyo said as Sesshomaru approached with Abi.

"They say speak of the devil and he shall appear," Midoriko remarked as the dog demon leaned down to greet Kikyo with a small kiss on the mouth. He looked at the elder sister as he sat down next to Kikyo.

"I get the feeling you were talking about Sesshomaru then," Abi quipped with a smile as she sat down, sitting near Midoriko.

"He is the devil," the elder human female commented.

"That or he ate the devil," the bird demon added in.

"Is this what you two plan to bond over?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"No, but it's really fun," Abi informed him with a teasing smile. Midoriko nodded in agreement and laughed a bit to prove how fun it was.

Sesshomaru sighed and just left them to peck at him like the hens they were, in his opinion anyway. With luck, he thought that they would get along well enough to where Abi might actually want to go hang out with the sisters rather than pester him. Anything that might get her out of his hair was fine by him, even if it meant some verbal abuse coming his way. He was looking at the big picture.

Instead of bothering with Abi and Midoriko, the nobleman turned his attention to his woman and noticed what she was doing. Kikyo was still circling her glass with her finger, which he put a stop to. He gently grabbed her hand and pulled it away from her cup. She sighed while casting a glance in his direction.

"It's irksome," he informed her.

"I know," Kikyo replied.

Sesshomaru sighed again, but he was not really bothered by anything. He sat back while the women jumped into a conversation about clothing because Abi had gone shopping that morning. Despite the fact that they all had different taste in clothing, he did note that they all had one thing in common and that was they bought rather expensive clothing. Midoriko was into business suits while Kikyo was into her own style altogether and Abi was pretty much the same as Kikyo.

Eventually, they did order lunch. During the meal, Abi did throw out the idea that maybe Midoriko and Kikyo might show her around the museums that Sesshomaru took her to, if only to give her some different points of view and help her better understand concepts about the art. Kikyo looked at Midoriko, who shrugged.

"What's your schedule like?" Midoriko asked her little sister.

"I'm checking," Kikyo answered while pulling out her appointment book. She preferred having a book to write things in while Midoriko was more high tech when it came to keeping track of her appointments.

"Well, I'm free in the afternoon a couple of days from now," the lawyer stated.

"Well, you two might have to go on your own. I am booked this whole week it would seem, even Saturday," Kikyo informed them.

"You are one busy doctor," Abi commented. "But, me and the big sister should be able to get along well on our own, right?" she added with a bit of a smile mixed with a smirk.

"That should be fine," Kikyo agreed for her big sister.

"Besides, you and Midoriko offering opinions on art, you might as well be one person," Sesshomaru remarked.

"At least our opinions aren't demented," Midoriko riposted.

"Merely wrong and boring," he shot back in his usual calm manner.

"I have yet to meet the artist of a painting proclaiming your interpretation of his work is spot on," she countered in her typically collected tone.

Sesshomaru was undaunted and had a comeback of his own. Kikyo and Abi just watched the pair go back and forth for about a minute. Kikyo at least had the decency to not laugh while Abi was chuckling as if they were at a comedy duo. The laughing was the thing that got Sesshomaru and Midoriko to stop, though. It would seem that neither of them enjoyed being a show for someone else.

"Anyway, the afternoon after tomorrow, we can go to the museum," Midoriko said to Abi.

"Fine with me. Hear that, dog breath, I get actual sophisticated company in two days," the bird demon commented with a teasing expression on her face.

"I shall rejoice and hope that Midoriko doesn't find her mind anytime soon and that way she won't return you to me," he retorted.

Abi and Midoriko frowned, noting that he had gotten both of them with one comment. Sesshomaru felt like his work was done by getting back at both of them in one breath. Kikyo just shook her head; she supposed that she was going to have to be kinder to her love for a while since he was getting attacked verbally at all sides.

----(New day)

Sesshomaru figured since Abi was now Midoriko's problem, at least for the afternoon, he would surprise Kikyo. He thought that would be a good thing and he would like to see her smile at him; he just loved her smile. So, he brought her a few red and white roses, just something for her to keep in her office for a few days and he was going to see if she was free for lunch, alone.

He parked his car and walked toward the medical center. He noticed the group of six people hanging outside of the clinic. He thought that was rather tacky, but he did not say anything about it. He entered the center and went directly to Kikyo's office, knowing that she was there because of her scent.

"Angel," Sesshomaru greeted her from the doorway.

"Sessho," Kikyo said in slight shock. She had sensed him coming, but she was not sure why he was at her job.

"How does this day find you, beloved?" he inquired with an interest that only she could hear in his voice. He presented her with the roses while stepping into the small office. Being in her office made him appreciate his office because he was fairly certain that he could fit about five of her offices in his office with space left over. He did not see how she could stand being in such a small space, even if it was only for a few minutes.

"As fine as it can possibly be when you show up," she replied with a small smile and that brightened his day for him. She accepted the flowers that he had for her, but she did not have a vase to put them in.

"That is promising. Would you care to join me for lunch, beloved?" he proposed.

"You know I would love to. Give me a few minutes to finish up here," she answered.

Sesshomaru nodded and he stood there waiting for her to finish what she was doing. After standing there for a few seconds, something odd caught his attention. He smelled someone approaching and the scent was vaguely familiar. He guessed that the aroma belonged to someone that Kikyo worked with and then the owner of the smell showed up, Suikotsu. His Kikyo was carrying the scent of a male? Sesshomaru frowned.

Suikotsu caught sight of Sesshomaru as he came down the hallway and was able to see into Kikyo's office. He recognized the dog demon from the picture that Kikyo had in her office. He was surprised to see the nobleman, thinking that the demon never visited Kikyo. It was one of those things that made him believe that Sesshomaru did not deserve Kikyo. He figured that any real boyfriend would visit his girl at her job.

Suikotsu kept walking, going by Kikyo's office and looking inside. He glanced at her; she watched him go by. He also eyed Sesshomaru, who did the same thing. The male doctor did continue on his way, though. He figured that he would tell Bankotsu and the others about Sesshomaru being around. He knew that Bankotsu wanted to know about Sesshomaru, but he was not too sure why.

The dog demon was mildly intrigued by the passing doctor. He supposed that it was all right for Kikyo to smell vaguely of someone that she worked with, but he was not very open to the idea because it just was not right for his woman to smell even slightly like a male that was not him. He turned his attention to her.

"Beloved, the man that just passed," Sesshomaru said.

"Suikotsu," she supplied him with the name.

"Okay, but does he spend time around you often?" he inquired.

"He often comes by my office to greet me in the morning," she answered.

Sesshomaru did not respond to that. He did not like the idea of some man visiting his beloved on the daily basis, even if it was innocent; or at least innocent on Kikyo's end. He doubted that the visits were innocent from the man's position.

"So, where would you like to go to lunch?" Sesshomaru inquired, putting the man out of his mind for the moment at least.

"Anywhere is fine by me," she answered.

The dog demon nodded to that information. He then waited patiently for her to finish what she was doing. She stopped to smell her roses before turning to him when she was finished with her work. She liked how whenever he brought her flowers underneath there own scent was a small piece of Sesshomaru's smell there that just hinted at her nose.

The couple left, walking by Suikotsu's friends as they exited the medical center. Bankotsu did not say anything, but he did watch the couple curiously. He guessed that the dog demon was the boyfriend. He had not gotten a good look at the picture that was in Kikyo's office to be totally sure, but he was just going to go ask Suikotsu in a few moments.

"She's got good taste," Jakotsu commented.

"Not now, Jakotsu," Bankotsu said, which caused the effeminate male to pout.

"What?" Jakotsu asked, curious as to what he had done wrong.

"We're thinking about Suikotsu now, like good friends do, okay?" Bankotsu pointed out.

"Fine," Jakotsu sighed. They were thinking about Suikotsu, but that did not mean that he could not think about the demon that had left with Kikyo while he was at it. The demon had been rather attractive, after all.

--------------

Sesshomaru and Kikyo went out to lunch to their usual restaurant. He was happy that he was back there with Kikyo and it was almost visible on his face. She did notice the glint in his golden eyes that most people would have missed. She was pleased that her presence could make him close to smiling in public.

"Do you think your sister would keep Abi for the rest of the day?" Sesshomaru wondered out loud. It was his hope.

"I'm not sure. They seem to get along quite well. Maybe if Abi is persistent enough, she could talk Midoriko into staying out with her. Midoriko really needs it," Kikyo replied.

The sliver-haired male was inclined to agree, but he did not express that. He could understand why Midoriko might not want to make friends or anything, but he agreed with his beloved because if Midoriko had a friend to do things with, she would not need to be around Kikyo as often and he could have Kikyo all to himself. The idea was very pleasing as far as he was concerned.

"Well, if she does keep Abi company for the rest of the day, what do you say I take you out to dinner too?" Sesshomaru proposed.

"I would love that," she answered.

Sesshomaru was very, very close to smiling now; his lip was even twitching, ready to move into an upward curl. He was already enjoying his day more than he had since Abi showed up in his life just from being around Kikyo and being able to take her out alone. He reached across the table and took her hand into his. She smiled, both for her own happiness and for his.

They had a quiet, but joyful lunch. They took their time with the meal and Sesshomaru returned Kikyo to work at the last possible moment. He informed her that he would come and pick her up as long as Abi was still with Midoriko; if Abi ended up being with Sesshomaru, Midoriko would come pick up the doctor as that was how things had been going since Abi showed up. Kikyo nodded to that and then Sesshomaru surprised her.

The nobleman leaned down and captured Kikyo's mouth with his own. Her chocolate eyes went wide in shock. They usually did not engage in shows off affection when they were in public. They just were not the type for public displays, even if they were in an empty hall, which they were at the moment. They were in the doorway of Kikyo's office.

The raven-haired female got over her shock after a few seconds and just appreciated the feel of his lips on her. She closed her eyes and returned the kiss while wrapping her arms around his neck. He put his hands on her waist, pulling her close to him. They did not end the kiss until breathing was absolutely necessary.

"I'll see you this evening," he practically whispered to her.

Kikyo only nodded and with that her lover was gone. She sighed and flopped down into her seat. She hoped that he was the one that was going to pick her up. She had no problem with riding with her sister, but she missed Sesshomaru. She did not like sharing him with Abi, even if it was only temporary and nothing was going on between the two demons. Her mind was taken off of that subject as Suikotsu suddenly appeared at her door.

"Good afternoon, Kikyo," he greeted her with a smile.

Kikyo's expression almost fell because of his appearance, but she kept her control. She forced a little smile out for him. The right end of the smile did twitch in aggravation, but he did not seem to notice.

"Good afternoon, Suikotsu," she replied, forcing her mouth to avoid speaking through her teeth.

"Did you have a good lunch?" he inquired.

"Very," she answered honestly.

"So, that man that was in your office earlier, was he the man in the picture on your desk?" he asked curiously.

"Yes," she answered plainly. Any person with eyes would have been able to see that in her opinion.

Suikotsu made a noise and nodded slightly. He never thought that her boyfriend would actually come up to the center since he had never seen the boyfriend before. Was the demon more considerate than he thought? He doubted it. He was not sure what brought the demon up to the clinic, but he was not going to let it get him down. He was still certain that he was better for Kikyo and his friends backed him on that, but he still did not know what to do.

Suikotsu tried to make some small talk with Kikyo, but she had an appointment that she needed to get to, which she was very thankful for. He sighed as she went to an examination room. She never seemed to respond to him, he noted. He was not sure what he should do. His friends had urged him to just ask her out, but he argued that it was not that simple. He could not be so forward with Kikyo for whatever reason, even though a voice in his mind was ordering him to do just what his friends suggested.

--------------

Bankotsu and his crew watched as Sesshomaru exited the medical center. The dog demon glanced at the group, but did not seem to pay them any further attention. Bankotsu figured that they would get Sesshomaru when they saw him again if Suikotsu did not make his move on Kikyo. It would be fun, Bankotsu thought with a smile. He was sure that a good fight would get Jakotsu to stop whining.

Sesshomaru did not think too much on the group hanging out outside the medical center. He did not care what humans did to pass the time, no matter how tacky it was. He did wish that they were not loitering outside of the space that Kikyo worked, but they did not seem to be doing any harm.

The nobleman decided to think about where he would take Kikyo if he got the night to himself. He figured that it would be safe to check in with Abi and see if Midoriko was sick of her yet. He called the bird demon.

"Miss me?" Abi teased the dog demon when she answered her phone.

He did not miss a beat with his response. "Like one would miss a bad rash," he answered.

"Aw, you miss me," she continued on.

"Hardly," he assured her. "Have you worn out your welcome with Kikyo's sister?"

"Not at all."

"So, you will remain with her?" he asked, but he sounded more like he was ordering her to do that.

"Well, I suppose," she answered as if it pained her to stay with Midoriko, but she would do it as a favor to him. In fact, she was enjoying Midoriko's company much more than Sesshomaru's since Midoriko was nowhere near as condescending as the dog demon, although Abi doubted that God All-mighty was as condescending as Sesshomaru.

"All right," he said and he disconnected the call.

"Ass," Abi muttered as she put her phone away; yes, she was referring to Sesshomaru.

--------------

Kikyo smiled as Sesshomaru showed up at her office door as she was leaving for the evening. She was glad to see him for two reasons; it meant that he was all hers for the rest of the day and that Abi was getting along with her sister. It was a win/win situation for her.

The couple left that night holding hands. As they exited the building, they did not notice that Bankotsu and his group were not out there for once. They went for dinner at a little restaurant and engaged in some light conversation. Feeling oddly adventurous, the couple then went to a movie after dinner and they were in such good moods that they barely noticed that they sat through a film that would typically bother them; it was heavy on special effects and light on plot depth.

They arrived home late at night, but that did not faze either of them. Sure, Kikyo had work in the morning, but she was pleased with having spent the whole night with Sesshomaru rather than spending half of the night home on her own wondering what he was doing. She was ready to fall into bed, but apparently, Sesshomaru had other plans, or so his grabbing her from behind and placing light kisses on her neck implied. She did not resist, even though she did have work in the morning.

----(New day)

Suikotsu was pacing in his office, which did not give him much space to pace in. He had to turn around every two steps. He was nervous. He was anxious because it had been decided that he would ask Kikyo out and if she did not accept, Bankotsu figured that he would take care of that.

He knew that Kikyo was already in and she was with a patient at the moment. He was thankful for the time to stall, but he knew that he was going to have to go sooner or later. He gulped, but a voice in his head ordered him to stop acting like a coward and talk to the woman. The voice got louder as time passed and it steeled him until he was confident enough to go to her office once she was done.

Kikyo was ready to sigh because she could just feel him coming toward her office. What was she going to have to do to get Suikotsu to understand that she was not interested? She was not sure and she did not get the answer before he was standing in her doorway, so she was going to have to deal with him for the moment yet again.

"Good morning, Kikyo," Suikotsu greeted her, even though they had gone through that when she had come in about an hour ago.

"Good morning," she replied, turning to pay him some mind to avoid being rude, although she was starting to consider that she was going to have to be just that to him if he was going to continue on as he was.

"How's the day going so far?" he asked.

"Fine," she answered in an almost clipped tone. She might as well have told him to go away with the way her voice came out.

Suikotsu took notice of the very rare attitude, but he did not suspect that it had anything to do with him. He immediately blamed her mood on her demon boyfriend, betting the inferior male had done something to her to put her in such a foul mood. Obviously, to him anyway, that demon did not deserve such a fair creature as Kikyo.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Kikyo asked Suikotsu since he was just standing in her doorway now.

"Um…well, I was wondering if you would like to have lunch with me today," Suikotsu just sort of blurted out.

Kikyo was almost taken back by his forwardness, but she maintained her composure. "I have plans," she answered almost a second after the proposal.

"With that demon?" he practically demanded to know. The speed with which she answered him seemed to have angered him, which was unexpected since he was normally so even tempered.

"How is that any of your business?" she countered. She actually did not know who she had lunch plans with. It depended on who was spending the day with Abi, she supposed.

The retort seemed bring him back to himself. "Oh…yes, right. I'm sorry," he apologized and he then bid her farewell rather hastily. He was not sure what came over him to make him so angry with her so suddenly. He went to step outside for some air to hopefully get his head together. He walked right into Bankotsu.

"Hey, did you ask her out?" Bankotsu inquired curiously.

"Yeah. Hey, where are the other guys?" Suikotsu looked around and noticed that the short leader was the only one around.

"Ah, they went to do their own thing," Bankotsu answered in a dismissive tone, waving his hand in a nonchalant manner to further show that he could care less. "So, what happened with Kikyo? Where you taking her?"

"Nowhere. She declined."

"She declined?" Bankotsu echoed as if he did not understand. "Ah well, it's probably because of that demon guy. I'll change her mind."

"You will. How?" Suikotsu asked curiously.

"I'll fight him and make him dump her," Bankotsu declared as if that was the most logical plan of all time, but for him it was and Suikotsu did not argue with it because he knew how the shorter male was.

Bankotsu figured that the next time that he saw Sesshomaru, he would challenge the demon to a battle and force the dog demon to break up with Kikyo. Then Kikyo would be free and Suikotsu could sweep her off of her feet. Surprisingly enough, Sesshomaru came by that afternoon; he was going to take Kikyo to lunch again. It would seem that Abi did prefer Midoriko's company to his and he could not be happier for that fact.

Sesshomaru frowned as he made it to the door of the medical center, only to find Bankotsu blocking the entrance. He would not have cared, but the short human did not move out of his way. Bankotsu smirked.

"What?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"I'll give you a fair chance to back out of this. Either you dump Kikyo right now and I won't have to kick your ass or I could kick your ass and then you dump Kikyo," Bankotsu answered.

If Sesshomaru had just a little less self-control, he would have been rolling on the ground, dying of laughter. Instead, his face barely twitched from what he saw as a ludicrous ultimatum. There must be something wrong with the little human, he thought.

"Move," Sesshomaru commanded, not wanting to waste his time with such foolishness.

"I guess I'll have to make you then," Bankotsu said while cracking his knuckles. "This'll be fun," he decided and probably easy. He figured that Sesshomaru could not possibly all that tough just from the way he looked. One would have guessed that with his friends, he would have learned not to judge a book by its cover.

Sesshomaru sighed. It would seem that he was going to have to injure the little human for him to learn anything. Well, at least they were right outside of a doctor's office.

--------------

Next time: the outcome of this battle and another battle. Sesshomaru ends up curious about Suikotsu's relationship to Kikyo too.


	11. Tempting

I don't own these characters.

11: Tempting

"Did you tell Kikyo that you weren't going to meet her for lunch?" Abi asked Midoriko curiously. They were at an auto show. Abi had talked Midoriko into it; Midoriko still was not sure how she lost that argument. The bird demon had a serpent's tongue or something for that to have happened as far as the human was concerned.

"No, but you spoke to Sesshomaru and told him you were with me. He'll take that as his chance to go have lunch with her," Midoriko answered.

"I see. You two have a system worked out?" Abi guessed.

"I guess you can call it that. We used to have days picked."

"So, you two were kind of sharing Kikyo, huh?" the bird demon asked. She was not teasing or making fun of her human companion in any way.

"I suppose."

"Well, at least you're close with your sister. Do you have lunch with your friends when it's not your day?" Abi asked curiously.

"No. I work through lunch when I don't meet up with her. I don't have any friends," Midoriko admitted in a rather unashamed tone. She and Kikyo were the reserved ones in their family and rarely made something that could be mistaken for a friend. Kaede and Kagome were the ones that went out and socialized and made friends.

"Hmmm…" Abi laughed a bit, but she did not say anything. Midoriko wondered what was so finny, but decided not to ask. The conversation was dropped and they continued on walking through the car show. Midoriko silently decided that the show was not as bad an idea as she had first assumed it was. She even dared to smile a bit, which Abi noticed, but did not say anything about. The demon princess did smile a little herself.

--------------

Sesshomaru could not believe the situation that he was currently in. Bankotsu had ordered him to dump Kikyo or they were going to have to fight. Sesshomaru had not even bothered to dignify the choice with a response and, so, Bankotsu attacked him.

Sesshomaru at first had not thought that Bankotsu was serious until the young man threw a punch that almost connected. It was rather surprising to the demon. Sesshomaru dodged the strike, which surprised Bankotsu. The dog demon was faster than he thought.

"What the hell?" Bankotsu muttered, but he did not get any other words out.

Sesshomaru countered, hitting Bankotsu in his unguarded stomach. The human coughed in pain and dropped to his knees, shocked from the agony coursing through his body; the nobleman might as well had hit him with a building in his abdomen. Sesshomaru just left him there on the ground and went into the clinic, going right to Kikyo's office.

"Beloved," Kikyo said, not expecting to see him for lunch again.

"Abi is with your sister again, stating that she was going to expand Midoriko's horizons instead of the other way around," Sesshomaru reported, which explained his presence to her.

"That's good," Kikyo commented.

Sesshomaru nodded in agreement. As long as Abi and Midoriko kept themselves busy, he was free to spend his time with Kikyo. He hoped that those two found many, many things to do together.

The couple left together, which Suikotsu noticed. He wondered if something happened, so he went to go talk to Bankotsu, but found that the leader was not outside as he usually was. Bankotsu had gone for backup because he was not going to let Sesshomaru make a chump out of him again.

--------------

The nobleman returned Kikyo to her job after another fine lunch together. He noticed Bankotsu standing in front of the medical center with his usual band of misfits, all looking like they wanted to die in his opinion; they were staring at Sesshomaru with contempt in their gaze. They did not say anything to him as he walked Kikyo into the clinic. She noticed the tension in the air between the group and her lover.

"Sessho, sweetheart, is there something going on?" Kikyo asked as they went into the center. She glanced back at Suikotsu's friends.

"It's nothing for you to concern yourself about," Sesshomaru answered.

"What do you mean?" she inquired since his response did confirm that there was something going on.

"I wouldn't want to trouble you with nonsense and that's all it is. It's nonsense. I'm probably going to be the one that comes to pick you up, is there anywhere you want to go for dinner?" he countered, not wanting to bother her with the subject that she had brought up.

"Let's not go out for dinner," she replied.

He nodded. "Dinner in? All right. That's fine." If they were already in the apartment, it would give them more time to spend doing things aside from eating a meal.

"See you this evening, then?"

Sesshomaru nodded again and leaned down to give her a kiss goodbye. She accepted the embrace and returned the show of affection. When they broke apart, Sesshomaru turned to leave and face the annoying situation outside. Kikyo went back to work as her beloved left the area.

The dog demon strolled out of the medical center with his usual confident step and was faced with Bankotsu and his group, including Suikotsu. Bankotsu was standing in front of his crew and he had something that would have made most people nervous. Bankotsu was holding a huge sword.

"Don't throw your lives away like this," Sesshomaru warned the group. He would rather not have to kill a bunch of humans outside of his lover's work place because he doubted that she would take it well, even if the humans had it coming to them.

"You're the one that throwing your life away. You should've just left Kikyo," Bankotsu replied.

"Even though making you do it is much more fun," Jakotsu remarked, holding a sword of his own, which was resting on his shoulder.

"What's your interest in Kikyo?" Sesshomaru inquired. Usually, he would not bother to ask why stupid people were doing stupid things, but the current stupid thing involved his woman. He wanted to make sure that Kikyo was safe with them around. If they gave him the impression that she was not safe with them around, he was going to make such that they were not around anymore.

"That's none of your business. Now, you better leave Kikyo right now," Bankotsu stated and threateningly pointed his weapon at the nobleman.

"And if I don't?" Sesshomaru asked, even though he knew the answer to that. He was a bit astonished at how brazen the humans were, having the nerve to wield weapons against him and in broad daylight. He did not care, though.

The answer to Sesshomaru's question was a sudden slash on his shoulder; Jakotsu had cut the demon with his sword. The golden-eyed male glanced at the wound and did not seem too affected by it. He then suddenly lashed at the group, letting his energy whip fly. He caught two of the crew members, cutting Ginkotsu and Kyokotsu across their chests and dropping them with that one move. Jakotsu and Bankotsu attacked with their swords.

Sesshomaru dodged the pair and let his energy whip go again. They blocked and Renkotsu came up behind the nobleman. Sesshomaru turned around faster than Renkotsu expected and Sesshomaru grabbed the human by the throat. He brought Renkotsu down hard on top of Mukotsu.

Jakotsu and Bankotsu went into attack Sesshomaru once again. The dog demon moved out of the way and the two gang members almost hit their friends with their moves. They breathed sighs of relief when they had just missed Mukotsu and Renkotsu with their deadly assault.

As soon as Sesshomaru avoided the swords, he found himself having to dodge an attack from Suikotsu, who was wearing blades on his hands as weapons. Sesshomaru lost some strands of hair dodging the attack. He could not believe that he was being attacked by a doctor. He wondered if Suikotsu had something to do with him being in a fight over his relationship with Kikyo.

"You want her, don't you?" Sesshomaru inquired. It would explain why the doctor visited his beloved every morning.

"She deserves better than you," Suikotsu stated soundly.

Sesshomaru should have guessed as much, he told himself. He decided that he was not even going to play around with the pathetic humans anymore. He was about to teach them a very important lesson and that was there was no one better than him. He was perfection and Kikyo was his. She was his angel and no one else need think about having her.

Sesshomaru used his own claws to cut through the blades that Suikotsu was using with more ease than scissors went through tissue paper. He did not even give Suikotsu a chance to realize what he had done, moving in for a more powerful blow. He punched Suikotsu clean on the chin with enough power to knock the young doctor back several yards. A wall halted the doctor's flight from the hit.

Sesshomaru quickly turned his attention back to Bankotsu and Jakotsu to finish them off. They tried to hit him with their weapons, but he countered them with his energy whip. He shocked both of them by actually cutting through their swords with his whip. He ran at them, looking to take hold of them, but they both moved out of the way. They were faster than he had given them credit for, but that was no matter to him. He would have them soon enough.

The silver-haired demon put his hands up to block punches as Bankotsu and Jakotsu came back at him. He then found himself before grabbed from behind by Suikotsu and punched in the side by Renkotsu. They had actually managed to touch him. Sesshomaru was now angry.

The nobleman's eyes bleed over, the whites turning scarlet. He ripped himself away from Suikotsu with ease and grabbed Renkotsu by the head. He flung Renkotsu almost completely down the street and the human was now down for the count. Sesshomaru then turned his attention back to Bankotsu and Jakotsu, planning to save Suikotsu for last to make sure that fool felt his wrath without interruptions.

Sesshomaru grabbed Bankotsu and Jakotsu before they could react. He took them by their arms and they suddenly felt intense pain shoot through their bodies, going from their wrists all the way up to their shoulders. They cried out because of the pain that they were feeling. He released them and they could not move due to the agony that they were experiencing.

"What did you do to them?" Suikotsu demanded to know.

"The same thing I'm going to do to you, but I'll be doing it to your neck," Sesshomaru replied in a growl of a voice.

Suikotsu looked rather skeptical on that, but Sesshomaru moved to prove his point. He ran at the doctor and went to latch on to Suikotsu's neck. Suikotsu saw the hand coming from him and moved out of the way while pushing the hand away from him. But, he did not see the other hand coming. Sesshomaru grabbed Suikotsu by the neck and Suikotsu grabbed onto Sesshomaru's hand, trying to pry the heated dog demon off of him.

"Kikyo is mine," Sesshomaru snarled at the doctor.

Suikotsu gasped, choking and not due to the pressure from Sesshomaru's hand. The nobleman growled again because of his fury at the nerve of the human in his grip. How dare the little gnat even consider stealing his Kikyo from him! Sesshomaru would snap the fool's neck if only it would not bring him more trouble than necessary. He flung Suikotsu to the ground after a few seconds. Suikotsu continued gasping for air.

"The poison I put in you and your foolish friends isn't at the fatal level, but you're going to be hurting for few weeks every time you take a breath and every time they move their arms. Leave my beloved alone or else the next time you taste my wrath, it will be lethal," Sesshomaru promised the doctor.

The dog demon then walked off as if nothing happened. He was glad that no one was on the street at the moment or he would have had to deal with the police bothering him. He was not interested in such a thing. He just wanted things to be clear that Kikyo was his woman and he would not allow anyone to think otherwise.

He went to his car, but he did not start the vehicle. He now wondered if that idiot Suikotsu had actually been bothering Kikyo and that was why his scent marked her pleasant form ever-so slightly. Had something been going on that he needed to know about? Well, now he was going to have to ask when he came back for Kikyo later.

After a few minutes of considering why Suikotsu's scent might be on his beloved, the demon finally started his car and drove off. He took a few calming breaths as he made his way back to his office. After such annoyances, he was thankful that he did not have to deal with Abi.

--------------

"You are not driving me back to the hotel," Abi groaned as she noticed where Midoriko was headed. They were situated in Midoriko's car and the bird demon was riding shotgun.

"Of course I am. I have to get home to my little sister," Midoriko answered. She could not just allow Kaede to run amok in the apartment all night. It would be irresponsible and something serious could happen.

"But, it's hardly six yet," Abi pointed out.

"I know and the only reason I was able to stay out this long was because Kaede decided to hang out with Rin. They probably out cracking their skulls as we speak," Midoriko remarked.

"Cracking their skulls? Rin? Is that dog breath's sister?" Abi inquired, referring to Sesshomaru when saying "dog breath."

"Yes, that's his little sister. She, Kaede, and two of their other friends skate," the human explained.

"Someone related to you and Kikyo as well as someone related to Sesshomaru actually skate. That is weird," Abi commented. She been around Midoriko enough to know that she would not even be caught dead near some skates because of how reserved and proper she was and she had come to understand that Kikyo was very much like Midoriko, so she thought it was strange for their little sister to be almost the opposite. "Maybe you'll let me meet your little sister," she proposed.

Midoriko's grip on the steering wheel got extra-tight, her knuckles turning close to white. Apparently, she did not agree with that suggestion. Abi did not show any signs of noticing and she tried her best not to take any offense to that, but she did. Her brain was telling her that she should not give a damn about meeting some snot-nosed human brat, but it was not any old snot-nosed human brat. It was Midoriko's little sister.

"Maybe some other time," Abi offered to get to ease the tension in Midoriko and give them both an out from the sudden anxiety bothering both of them.

"Yes, some other time," Midoriko replied in a calm tone and her grip on the poor steering wheel did lessen.

"Well, do you have to be home with her? Can't she go to Kikyo's house for a little while and you hang out with me for just a couple of hours? We could go to the movies or something," the princess suggested.

Midoriko did not respond right away. She supposed that she could do that. Kikyo was always pointing out that she was in a good position to help and she did want to help. Also Kikyo always stressed that her elder sister needed a social life of some kind. So, such a request probably would please Kikyo, especially if she explained why. Well, not completely explain. The human female grabbed the ear piece for her cell phone and called the middle sister.

"Yes, big sister?" Kikyo inquired as she answered her phone.

"I was wondering if you wouldn't mind taking Kaede. Not for the whole evening mind you," Midoriko stated.

"Of course I wouldn't mind. Are you sure you don't want me to take her for the whole night?"

Midoriko glanced at Abi. "Well, I suppose if she wants to stay with you for the night, she could," the elder sister answered.

"All right. Does she know about this arrangement?"

"No."

"I'll call her. Might I ask why you'd like me to take our little sister?"

Midoriko glanced at Abi again. "Um…well…I might be going to the movies…" she replied and she thankfully did not have to finish that statement.

"Oh, that's great. Have fun," Kikyo said.

"I will," Midoriko answered and then she bid her younger sister goodbye. She breathed a sigh of relief as soon as the call was disconnected.

"You are tightly wound," the bird demon commented. "I'm going to have to work a little harder to loosen you up, huh?" she remarked with a devilish smirk.

"That's unnecessary," Midoriko objected with more force than Abi had heard from the lawyer. The princess could not help laughing.

--------------

Kikyo finished on the phone with Kaede, who was more than happy to know that not only was she going to be staying with Kikyo for the night, but also that Midoriko was out doing something for once. Kaede, of course, had to tell Rin where she was spending the night and Rin wanted to stay too. So, Rin had to call Sesshomaru and request that she could stay for reasons that were news to him.

"So, beloved, I hear our little sisters are staying over," Sesshomaru said as he came to pick Kikyo up from work. He had not run into Suikotsu or his friends outside of the medical center, which he had expected. Those humans apparently were not as stupid as they looked, he thought.

"Well, Midoriko wanted to go out tonight and I should help with Kaede," Kikyo pointed out.

"Yes, and it just so happens that Kaede and Rin are connected at the hip now," he remarked because having one of their little sisters over now always meant having both of their little sisters over.

"Is it all right?" Kikyo asked since she had not cleared the plan with him. She knew that it was inconsiderate, especially if Sesshomaru had made plans for them tonight.

"Very much so. I don't mind them being around," he answered honestly. He supposed that it was going to be a quiet night as far as he was concerned, though.

"All right."

"Is Midoriko going out with Abi?" he asked curiously.

"She didn't say, but I'm guessing that she is since Abi is the only person that she's willing to be around for an extended period of time that isn't a family member."

Sesshomaru nodded. "They are spending a lot of time together," he noted.

"It's healthy for her."

The dog demon was not too sure about that, but if it kept Abi out of his hair, they could keep on hanging out. They could fly to the moon for all he cared. He did think that it was a bit odd, but he decided to not even think about it. He turned his attention back to Kikyo, who was putting some papers away.

"Angel, might you tell me about this Suikotsu fellow," Sesshomaru said casually.

"What would you like to know?" she inquired.

"His intentions toward you would be a good place to start."

That answer seemed to have gotten Kikyo's undivided attention. She put the papers down and turned to face Sesshomaru completely. He was looking aloof as usual, but staring at her with a cold intensity that showed he expected the whole truth from her.

"Is it his intentions you wish to know or my actions toward him?" she inquired because of the almost frozen gaze he was giving her.

Sesshomaru's face twitched slightly in annoyance, thinking that she was trying to turn the tables on him. He had not thought about any actions she might have taken toward the male doctor, but he should have known that she would think that had entered his mind. He should have known because of what he once accused her of being.

"I only asked for his intentions," Sesshomaru pointed out.

"And for you to ask means you obviously know," Kikyo countered.

"I actually don't and that's why I asked."

"Fine. The man is interested in me. He wished to take me out," she explained in as few words as she could.

"Why didn't you say anything? Didn't it bother you?"

"Yes, it bothered me, but I can take care of myself. I also didn't want to trouble you with pointless things. It's not like I was ever going to accept."

"I didn't say you would, but I don't like the idea of some man pestering you for dates. I would've made him stop," the demon informed his lover. Oh, he certainly would have cut that off as soon as she mentioned it to him if only she had done so.

"I have no doubt that you would've, but I didn't want to trouble you over it. He seemed harmless enough. Ask my big sister, she's met him. The man is harmless," she argued, making sure to keep her voice under control since her lover did not seem upset with her or anything. He just seemed concerned, which she thought was sweet, and she did want to ease his nerves to avoid any negative actions that might be taken on her behalf.

Sesshomaru did not comment to her words. She seemed to honestly believe that Suikotsu posed no threat to her and he doubted that the man did now. If Suikotsu was intelligent in any way, shape, or form, Sesshomaru was fairly certain that Kikyo would not have to worry about the man again, but he thought that she was wrong about him not posing a threat before he was handled.

"I still wish you would've told me about him. Tell me when someone bothers you," Sesshomaru calmly urged her.

"I can take care of myself," she repeated.

"Angel, I am here to help you, so you don't have to do things on your own. Enlist my aid for things such as this. I don't like the idea of some man bothering you and being able to do it on the daily basis is only worse," he informed her.

Kikyo was going to continue to argue, but she decided against it. She knew that his concern was genuine and he was not accusing her of anything. She sighed and decided to give in.

"Sessho, I just didn't want to trouble you with something that I thought was trivial," she explained.

"Nothing is trivial when it comes to you, so tell me everything from now on. Now, are you ready to go?" he inquired.

"Of course."

"Okay. I suppose we should pick up something to eat since the girls are going to be staying over. You'd all probably enjoy pizza, wouldn't you?" he asked.

She smiled. "Don't act like you won't eat two slices of it yourself," she replied.

Kikyo put away her papers and left with Sesshomaru. They did pick up a pizza and some drinks for dinner. They came home to find Rin and Kaede already there, playing some skating video game; Sesshomaru had caved in a few months ago and got the girls a game system, claiming it was for them getting good grades in school in their first year of high school. He figured that it might at least lead them to believe that if they would get more gifts if they kept up their good grades.

"You two, turn that off and come eat," Sesshomaru ordered before he had even gotten completely in the apartment.

"We can pause it, you know," Rin pointed out. She thought it was funny that her big brother swore everything had to be turned off when it was not in use.

"Do whatever, but put it down and come eat," the demon stated.

"Okay." The girls did as ordered, pausing the game to go eat.

While Rin and Kaede got plates to put their food on, Kikyo and Sesshomaru went to wash their hands. They came out and got slices of their own. They all ate standing around the kitchen, even though it was not something that they would usually do when having a meal. Pizza was special, though.

"So, what's Miko doing tonight, sis?" Kaede asked Kikyo.

"I'll bet she has a hot date," Rin remarked.

"Oh, you think?" Kaede asked her friend with a very intrigued look on her face. She was pretty sure that Midoriko had never in her life gone on a date. Kikyo would second that thought if she knew because she could not recall a time that Midoriko had a date.

"She's just out with a friend," Kikyo informed them before the girls got all kinds of wild ideas in their heads.

"A friend? She's got friends now?" Kaede asked in a very astonished voice. Hell, that was almost as intriguing as their elder sister being out on a date.

"She has one at the least," Kikyo answered.

"One good one is all you need," Kaede declared and Rin agreed with that by nodding her head. The young pair then gave each other a high-five. Their siblings just shook their heads to the girls' antics.

Once Kaede and Rin had their fill of pizza, they returned to their game. Sesshomaru and Kikyo cleaned up the mess in the kitchen. Kikyo then went to take a shower while Sesshomaru went into his studio to see if he wanted to add to painting that he had been working on quite a while ago.

--------------

Sesshomaru and Kikyo lay in the bed that night, only being cuddled up together. Rin and Kaede had just gone to bed too. Their sisters shared a room now, although once upon a time it had only been Rin's room. Rin did not mind having to split the room with Kaede, especially since it was a relatively big space anyway. Sesshomaru just hoped that the teens actually went to sleep because the last thing he wanted to do was hear them bugging out in the room; they had the bad habit of doing gymnastics on their beds when they were supposed to be asleep.

"Did Midoriko say what she was doing with Abi?" Sesshomaru asked curiously.

"She just said that they were going to the movies," Kikyo answered. "Why?"

"Nothing. I just can't understand why they like being around each other," he commented. He tried rationalizing why a human-hating demon and a demon-hating human would be spending so much time together, but it never worked out in his mind.

"Ours is not to understand, beloved. Aren't you just happy that you're not the one dragging Abi around now?" she pointed out.

"I am that. It's just…odd. You don't think it's odd?"

"I think it's fine. Midoriko is a fine judge of character, so I doubt that there's anything wrong with them hanging out. They're just enjoying each other's company," she replied.

"Perhaps…" he muttered.

"What?" she asked because of his skepticism.

"Well, Abi is a demon," he pointed out.

"I had no idea," she said sarcastically.

He continued on as if she had not just taunted him. "So, I considered her intentions when your little sister mentioned it being a date. What if Abi does think it's a date?" he wondered aloud.

"I doubt she does. Midoriko wouldn't let her think that," she said.

Sesshomaru shrugged. He supposed that it was a ridiculous thought, but he just considered how demons were compared to how humans were. Demons did not think in terms of sexuality like humans did when it came to passion, so demons often just found themselves attracted to folks that they got along with or that they thought were beautiful. But, he doubted that Midoriko would let anything become of anything if Abi was changing her attitude toward humans while being around Midoriko to the point where she might be considering something very much a taboo within her clan, namely lying with a human.

--------------

"I told you you'd have fun at that club," Abi boasted as she and a slightly drunk Midoriko exited out the third club that they had been to that night. The bird demon had decided to keep her companion out late since she knew that Midoriko did not have to get home to her little sister.

"You said that about every club," Midoriko commented in a light tone that she was unaware she owned.

"Well, every club is going to be fun as long as you're with me," Abi pointed out with a smile that was a cross between fond and entertained.

Midoriko laughed a bit and then stumbled slightly. Abi wrapped an arm around Midoriko's waist to keep her balance, but did not remove it when the human female was properly standing again. Midoriko glanced down at the limb resting so comfortably around her body, but she did not say anything. She also did not say anything when that arm pulled her closer to her companion and Abi leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"I think it might be better if I drive, dear," Abi remarked, her breath tickling Midoriko's ear.

"Probably," Midoriko agreed after a few seconds of just breathing. Abi chuckled a bit and smiled, remaining close to Midoriko. "Just don't drive us to another club," the lawyer added.

"And here it is I thought you were going to be some fun now that you're drunk," the princess quipped and pretended to pout. Actually, Midoriko was fun no matter what. There was something about her where she seemed subdued, but was nothing of the sort. She was so collected, no matter what they were doing, and it was intriguing. Abi would dare say that it was tantalizing and she was just going to stick around to see how far that temptation went.

--------------

Next time: mostly just Abi and Midoriko.


	12. The art of being bold

I don't own these characters.

12: The art of being bold

Kikyo noticed something strange around her job and she just had to question it. Suikotsu had been out for a few days and she had noticed that his friends were no longer hanging around outside of the clinic. So, she wondered what happened. She could not help it because it had been behavior that had been going on for months and now it suddenly stopped. Also, as far as she knew, Suikotsu never missed work from the time he had begun at the clinic.

A nurse around the medical center told Kikyo that Suikotsu was out with an emergency illness and would probably be out for a week, maybe more. She was sorry to hear that. Sure, the man was irksome, but he was a good guy and she did not wish any ill will toward him. She did hope that he got better soon for a number of reasons; one being that his patients needed him and the clinic needed him. She did not plan to send him any well wishes, though, believing that it would only encourage him.

Another nurse had the gossip on Suikotsu's friends, claiming that they had come down with the same illness. Kikyo supposed that made sense considering they all hung around each other. She was not so sorry for them because she was glad that they were no longer cluttering up the sidewalk outside of the center. People were no longer nervous just walking into the place because they had to go by several gang members.

Kikyo went about her day as usual. She found herself having lunch with Sesshomaru again, which she did not mind or even think much of. Sesshomaru was of like mind in that thinking. He dreaded the day when he was going to have to go back to being in Abi's company and he knew that was coming soon because Kikyo and Midoriko just had to around each other sometime and he was right.

After over a week of having Kikyo himself and no Abi around, the bird demon called him in the morning to say that Midoriko was meeting Kikyo for lunch and if he wanted to, she and he could spend some time together, pretending to like each other again. He had agreed just in case his father found out about him leaving Abi in the care of Midoriko for so long. He could already hear the lecture that the older demon would give him about leaving his responsibilities to someone else and not being a gentleman and blah, blah, blah. But, he would pay that price if Midoriko would just keep Abi with her forever, but he knew that was impossible.

--------------

Kikyo studied her elder sister for a moment as they took their seats for lunch. There was something different about her sister. Midoriko seemed, well, she supposed the word would be "happy." It was not that her sister ever seemed sorrowful or depressed or anything like that and on the surface she did not look any different than she usually did. Still, to the middle sister's trained eye, Midoriko seemed different; it was actually something that Kaede had noticed too.

"Are you all right, Kikyo?" Midoriko inquired curiously because of the way her younger sister was staring at her.

"I'm fine, sister. Are you all right?" Kikyo countered. She was not the one practically glowing, after all.

"I'm very fine," Midoriko answered.

Kikyo nodded. "I suppose being social and going out actually agrees with you then," she remarked.

The lawyer seemed to go tense for a second, but that went away quickly. Kikyo noticed, but she did not think anything of it. She just figured that her sister was being self-conscious because she had brought up something that Midoriko was not quite comfortable with discussing since it was so far from her norm. Kikyo could and would respect that by trying to broach the subject tentatively. She knew that it would probably be best to just leave the subject alone to avoid making her elder sister uncomfortable again, but she was rather curious about how Midoriko was getting along with Abi and if being with Abi would open her up to being more accepting of the idea of having at least one friend.

"I'm glad for you if that's the case," Kikyo added to her comment.

Midoriko was not sure what to say. "Thank you," she muttered.

Kikyo decided to let the subject go for the moment. It was clear that her big sister was uncomfortable with the topic and that was why she decided not to talk about it. Instead, they talked about things that usually went on about, like art and the state of the world.

Midoriko was curious about something though and she brought it up halfway through lunch. "How are things at your job? Is that young doctor still trying to steal you away from your demon?" she inquired.

"Suikotsu hasn't been in for a while. Apparently, he's been sick. His unruly friends also seem to be suffering from some illness," Kikyo answered.

"I'm torn on this issue," the elder sister remarked.

"I know how you feel."

The sisters were not sure if they felt sorry because Suikotsu and the others were ill or if they felt good because it meant that there would be no trouble around the medical center while the group was away. The sisters were compassionate, but they were also pragmatic, which often clashed with their compassion. They supposed that they could just not feel one way or another about the group being sick.

They dropped the subject and moved on to something else to speak on. They both quietly wondered how Sesshomaru and Abi were getting along. They figured as long as the pair of demons did not murder each other then they came out okay and the two had already proven that they could come together and a death not be imminent.

--------------

"You know, this doesn't impress me," Abi teased Sesshomaru as they sat down to eat in a fine restaurant.

"Abi, the day I try to impress you will be after a full frontal lobotomy," the dog demon replied.

Abi laughed a bit. She supposed that she missed Sesshomaru's dry counters to her uncalled for snaps. She did not have that with Midoriko, but she did not really want that Midoriko. She just wanted to get on Sesshomaru's nerves when they were together. It was better than forcing out the civility and everything; it was more natural.

"I'm sure Kikyo would like you more with the full frontal lobotomy. You might turn fun," the bird demon commented.

"She likes me just the way I am," he said through gritted teeth. Out of everything she could have said, bringing up Kikyo was not something that he liked, especially her implying that his beloved could like him more than she already did.

"You might think that, but if she's anything like her big sister, she's waiting for you to do something wild and fun, like break your spine and take her dancing," she stated.

Sesshomaru did not look entertained by her words, which Abi noticed. She did not really care, though. She would know when she went too far and she was certain that she had not even come close to the line.

"Don't act like you know Kikyo so well just because you've gone out with her sister a few times," he seemed to admonish her.

"I'm just saying if she's anything like Midoriko, she's a very outgoing female underneath that calm exterior," she replied.

"I take my angel out enough, thank you. I don't need you telling me what's underneath her exterior."

Abi smirked and decided that she was going to seriously mess with him. "I suppose you have pealed back all the layers on when it comes to your little angel, hmm?" she remarked.

"Could you be a little more crude?" he countered.

"I could, but it wouldn't be very fitting for a princess now would it?" she pointed out, still smiling.

"I don't think I've seen you do anything that is fitting for a princess," he commented. "Especially a demon princess," he added.

"Meaning what?" she inquired. Her smile vanished quickly because of his little addition. There seemed to be more to it than just the words.

"What exactly do you think you're doing with Midoriko anyway?" he inquired.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," she replied, turning her head up at him for having the gall to ask her such a thing.

"Humans aren't like demons, you know. I know you might enjoy chasing her right now, but you're not going to catch her," the dog demon pointed out.

Abi did not say anything immediately. She smiled, like a smart-aleck devil. He was unmoved by her expression, obviously calling her bluff with his aloof nature. She did not stop smiling, but she did reply.

"Don't worry about who or what I'm trying to catch. You just worry about holding on to yours," she stated.

"I have mine," he said firmly.

"Then leave me to my running. I'm enjoying it and who's to say I won't catch my prey? What do you know about her except that she's your beloved's protective older sister?" she inquired in an almost bitter tone.

Sesshomaru was shocked by the emotions in her voice, but he did not show any signs of that. Well, it would seem that Abi was chasing Midoriko, but from the tone in her voice, he suspected that it was for more than lust. He did not think too much on that; it was not rare for demons to be attracted to friends on a sexual level. It was odd for Abi, though.

"Your opinion on humans has changed rapidly," he noted, not looking at her now.

Abi nodded while looking away herself. "Was Kikyo like that with you?" she asked quietly.

Sesshomaru was silent for a moment. Did he really want to bond with Abi over such an issue? He supposed looking at it as "bonding" would not help, but he guessed that he should watch over the sister of his beloved and perhaps assist a fellow demon that had fallen into a similar trap as himself.

"Well, something like that. I tend to look at her and her sisters as the exceptions of their race," the dog demon commented.

"Well, I did figure that much. I mean, no human could possibly be on the same level as Midoriko," she muttered.

"You shouldn't bother with thinking about it."

Abi shrugged because he had a point. Why should she bother thinking about it or talking about it with him? What did he know? Well, he was only dating Midoriko's little sister, her mind pointed out. It did not matter. Just because he knew Kikyo well did not mean he knew Midoriko well and she was aware of that.

Sesshomaru let the topic fade into their memories. He did think that Abi was wasting her time if she was pursuing Midoriko for something beyond a friendship, but who was he to complain? She could waste her time. He would not mind because it would keep her out of his hair and it would occupy Midoriko to give him more time with Kikyo. It worked out for him and as far as he was concerned, that was all that mattered.

--------------

"How was your lunch with Sesshomaru?" Midoriko asked Abi as they met up to just to hang out for a couple of hours. Midoriko did have to get home to Kaede, well in her opinion. Abi did not see why Midoriko insisted like she had a toddler at home and not a teenager. The princess bet that the youngest sister was aching for some time alone in the house to do crazy teenager things.

"I know you're going to hate me for saying this, but he has to be the most amazing lay on the planet for your sister to put up with him," the bird demon replied, exaggerating as she had tendency to do when it came to the dog demon.

Midoriko made a stunned face; obviously, Abi was pretty right on the mark about the first part of her statement. That was certainly something Midoriko did not want to hear and her psyche was slightly scarred from photos thanks to her sister's late husband. Abi was not too sure if she wanted to laugh at Midoriko's expression or console her by taking the words back. Since the words could not return, she settled on snickering.

"What, pray tell, is so funny?" Midoriko asked with a deadpan expression on her face. She disliked it when Abi started laughing around her. She knew it was not malicious or mean-spirited things that caused the princess to laugh, but she just did not like being laughed at.

Abi reached out and put her hand on Midoriko's cheek. "That expression," she honestly answered with an amused smile.

Midoriko pulled away and fixed her face. "What would you like to do for the couple of hours I have to spare?" she inquired to change the subject.

Abi's smile transformed into a predatory smirk. "Oh, what would I like to do," she practically hummed.

Midoriko only rolled her eyes. The pair hung out for a while, just wandering the city, and Midoriko got home a little later than usual. Surprisingly enough, to her anyway, nothing was wrong. Kaede was the in the living room, watching television, eating potato chips, and doing her homework; it was just the way she typically did her homework. She smiled when she noticed her big sister standing in the entrance way to the living room.

"Hey, you have good time out?" the younger female inquired.

"I did," Midoriko confirmed. "Has everything been all right here?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Kaede answered. She was actually glad that Midoriko was a little late. It would give her big sister a chance to see that the world would not come to an end if she was left on her own for a little while. Maybe it would get her big sister to understand that it was all right for her to stay out late on some nights.

"So, what do you want for dinner?" Midoriko asked while heading to her bedroom to change out of her work clothing.

"Fish," Kaede replied.

"All right."

They had leftover fish from last night, so that would be a snap to heat up. Kaede thought that she might be able to talk about Midoriko's friend with her and let her elder sister understand that it was all right to stay out for a reasonable hour. She thought that it was great that Midoriko was getting out, so she wanted to encourage it.

Midoriko was rather stunned that when she came in Kaede was doing exactly what she would have been doing if the older sister was there. The apartment had not been burned down or blown up. Maybe the baby of their bunch was old enough to be left on her own for a little while, she considered as she changed her clothes, but she was not so sure. She was apprehensive with notion of leaving Kaede alone and also with staying out later than she generally did. Perhaps it was really just staying out that frightened her.

She knew that her baby sister was growing up and she could accept that, but her new social life frightened her. She wondered if Kikyo had been so scared when she made the acquaintance of her husband; Midoriko would not even speak that blasted hanyou's name in her mind. She supposed that Kikyo should have been scared when she met that liar, but Kikyo was braver than she was it would seem because Kikyo had taken the plunge. Hell, Kikyo had even gotten married to that bastard and then did something even more daring by carrying on an affair with Sesshomaru while being married. Kikyo might not seem it in her mannerisms, but she was bold. She was possibly the boldest one of out all of them.

"What would Kikyo do?" Midoriko found herself wondering and she thought that was rather inappropriate for the eldest to think.

She left her room and heated up their dinner. She called Kaede when the food was done and the teenager practically flew to the table; Kaede loved fish, even if it was leftovers. The two sisters sat down at their little table, eating together as they did every night.

"So, what did you and Abi do today?" Kaede inquired.

"Nothing much," Midoriko answered.

"You know, it's all right for you to hang out with her later. I'm all right by myself or I could always go to Kikyo and Sesshomaru's place," the teen offered up. She especially liked that second idea because it meant also spending time with Rin.

"That's all right. I'm fine the way I am."

"You shouldn't be so shy about having a friend. Having friends is great," Kaede declared with a grin. "Especially a best friend. Like me and Rin, we do everything together. We love spending time together, so I can understand that with you and Abi, except you guys don't get to see each other at school like me and Rin. That's why I think it's okay for you to stay out later," she explained, smiling all the way through.

"I'll take your words into consideration," Midoriko replied, hoping that it would get Kaede to drop the subject. She did not want to talk about it with Kikyo, so she definitely did not want to speak on it with Kaede. Her sisters would not understand anyway.

"Seriously, you should be proud to have a great friend and do as many fun things as possible with each other, like me and Rin. I mean, even today, we did some great stuff together, like jump a cafeteria table with our skates."

"What have I told you about taking your skates to school?"

Kaede winced slightly; it seemed that she was getting carried away and telling on herself. She laughed nervously and tried to wave off the question and statement. Midoriko was not buying it.

"I'm in trouble, huh?" the teen muttered.

"Yes, no more TV for the night and stop taking your skates to school. I don't want another call from one of your teachers or worse, the principal," Midoriko chided her sister.

"The principal only called that one time."

"You do realize some kids make it through their entire high school career without the principal ever calling their homes? You managed to get break that honor two weeks into the school year," Midoriko pointed out.

"Well, Kohaku knew this great place to grind rails—" Kaede started to explain herself.

"The stairwell in the school is not a great place to grind rails," Midoriko argued.

"Well, yeah, if the principal's a total hardass about things," the teen muttered.

"What did you just say?" Midoriko inquired because she was certain that she had heard wrong. Her baby sister had better not had just used a cuss word in front of her.

"Nothing!" Kaede eeped.

The teen decided to eat her food now without talking before she got into any real trouble. She returned to her homework when she was done with her food. Midoriko washed the dishes and sighed. She really was the meek one out of the trio, she thought. Kaede did all kinds of crazy things, especially if her skates were involved, and Kikyo went after what she wanted. But, it was not the same thing, she argued with herself. She was in a very different situation than they were.

Besides, they were allowed to act out, in her opinion anyway. Kaede was the baby of their group, so she was allowed to be immature and a little crazy. She had the safety net of believing that if she got into any trouble, her older sisters would be there to save her. It was an idea that the elder sisters encouraged because they would be there no matter what for Kaede.

Kikyo, in theory, had a similar excuse. If she was to get into trouble, she should be able to go to Midoriko. Time had tested that theory and it seemed to fall threw whenever it was tested, yet Kikyo probably stilled believed in it. Midoriko liked to believe that it was all right for Kikyo to believe in it because she felt certain that the next time Kikyo needed her, she would be there. She should be there because she was the eldest; that was how she felt anyway.

Being the oldest meant that she needed to set a fantastic example, in Midoriko's opinion anyway. She had to be the one that never missed a day of work, that provided whatever was needed for her sister, and that always did what was supposed to be done. She had to be punctual, if not early for everything. She had to be neater than everyone else; she had to stand straighter than everyone else; she just had to be better than everyone else to show her sisters that they could do anything. In short, she felt like she needed to be perfect. She needed to do everything right.

Midoriko sighed. She had done this to herself, she told herself. She had made herself meek, always hiding behind her sisters, always using them as a crutch, even though they were supposed to use her as a crutch. But, they could stand on their own for the most part and now they were trying to push her to do the same. Should she obey? She was not sure and it weighed on her mind.

----(New day)

"You seem distracted," Abi noted, speaking to Midoriko. They were having lunch again after a few days apart.

"I was just thinking," Midoriko said as if that would get the princess to dismiss the subject. She had already had to deal with Kikyo telling her that she seemed distracted on the days that they had lunch.

"About?"

"Nothing important."

Abi was not looking to accept that answer. She leaned onto the table and took Midoriko's hand in hers. She waited to see if the human female would pull away, which happened early on when she touched Midoriko. Midoriko seemed to consider pulling away, but she took a breath and remained there. Abi smiled.

"Now, how about you tell me what's going on in that gorgeous head of yours?" the bird demon requested with a bit of a purr.

"It's nothing, really," Midoriko insisted while fighting back a blush at being complimented. It was not often someone told her that she was gorgeous.

"You know I'm not going to stand for that. Tell me what's on your mind. You know I'm not going to let up until you do," Abi pointed out.

"I've been wondering what my sisters would do if they were in my position," Midoriko admitted in a low tone. She sounded rather ashamed of her thoughts, which was something that her companion was used to after spending some time with her.

"Are you sure you weren't wondering what they would do if they knew your position?"

"Well, that too," the human muttered, sounding even more ashamed of herself.

"You all seem so close, why do you even worry? Did Kikyo worry when she hooked up with Sesshomaru?" Abi inquired, thinking that she was helping because she doubted that Kikyo had been ashamed of herself.

"Yes," Midoriko easily answered.

Abi was taken aback by that answer. She did not know the facts behind how Sesshomaru and Kikyo had gotten together. Kikyo had been worried, but as Midoriko recalled it, Kikyo had not been ashamed. In fact, she had declared that she was not ashamed of her relationship with Sesshomaru back then, even though she had been married at the time. Perhaps she had been thinking on it too much, Midoriko considered. Kikyo would probably just accept things and go with them, she told herself. That was how Kikyo was, but she did not seem to be the same way.

"You worry too much. Humans worry too much," Abi commented, turning her mouth up because she was upset that she had been unable to help.

"Some of us have cause to worry since everything in life isn't handed to us on a silver platter," Midoriko retorted.

"Some of us seem to like feeling sorry for ourselves, even though they know they don't have cause to worry."

"What do you know about?" Midoriko huffed almost as if she was offended.

"Don't get bent out of shape," the princess urged her friend, tightening her grip on Midoriko's hand.

"I have a responsibility and I have to uphold it," Midoriko argued.

"You have a responsibility to yourself too, you know? You make it seem like you have to be a saint. Kikyo is already grown and she surely wouldn't want you acting almost untouchable. From what you've told me about Kaede, hell, she might think it's cool. She sounds like fun loving kid."

"They're not so carefree and I…I…it's just…not right."

"You should have faith in them, as they have faith in you. They're going to find out one day, unless you plan to deny yourself for the rest of your life," Abi commented.

Midoriko looked away. She had faith in her sisters, she said to herself. They were her sisters. They were as close as family could possibly get, but they were not above fights and rifts. She and Kaede had little tiffs every now and then, which she guessed could be expected because they lived together. With Kikyo, things were worse than that and the appalling behavior had been more on her end than on Kikyo's, in retrospect anyway. What if Kikyo reacted as she did? It was such a frightening thought that she began shivering, which Abi noticed because she was still holding Midoriko's hand.

"They would understand. It might take a while, but I don't think anything could split you all apart. I've seen you with Kikyo and I've heard you talk about Kaede. You should have faith in them and faith in me," Abi said.

"I want to…" Midoriko whispered.

"It's safe to trust us. We're here for you," Abi continued on.

Midoriko nodded, but she focused her eyes on the table and not on the person at the table. Take a chance, her mind urged her. Be bold, she ordered herself. Be bold, like them, just once. Maybe they would forgive her boldness as they all ultimately forgave each other. Sometimes just took longer than others. She looked up and smiled at Abi, who smiled back.

----(New day)

Kaede went to bed after checking in Midoriko's room one last time. She was not sure why she thought that Midoriko might be in her bed now when she had not been there the last ten times she checked. She was not worried about Midoriko not being in yet; her big sister had said that she might be out late that night and left a long list of instructions for Kaede to follow. She had gotten along quite well on her own for the night. It felt good to know that Midoriko was relaxed enough with leaving her alone now to go have a good time, even though Midoriko had left that list with some of the simplest things on it, like telling her to make sure the door was locked. It also felt a little odd to be going to bed without Midoriko in the apartment.

Still, she went to her room and crawled into bed, happy to know that for the first time ever as far as she knew that Midoriko was hanging out on a Friday night. She had even called Midoriko earlier that night, teasing her, but telling her to have a "kick ass time." Obviously, her excitement for her sister had gotten the better of her and she had gotten scolded for the language, but that did not bother her. She was so glad that Midoriko was out, clubbing as far as she knew, which was a weird thought in and of itself.

Keade could not imagine Midoriko at a club. She doubted that she had ever seen her sister dance or drink. So, she could not figure out what Midoriko might be doing in a club, but she did hope that the eldest was having a good time. Well, that was probably a given since Midoriko was not in by the time she was going to bed. Midoriko was probably having the time of her life, which was fantastic and about damn time in Keade's opinion.

In the morning, Kaede got up and was going to tease Midoriko relentlessly about her night out. She practically flew to her big sister's room, even though she knew that Midoriko typically did not wake up until an hour after she did on Saturdays. She leaped into the air and landed on Midoriko's bed, planning to land on her big sister, which she sometimes did, even though she was almost the same size as her older sister. The only thing was that the bed was empty. Midoriko was not there.

Kaede was a bit perplexed by that. She wondered, had Midoriko not come in at all? She crawled off of the bed and found it made as it had been last night, minus the wrinkles that she had just created. She went to check the bathroom to see if Midoriko was in there, but found it empty. The kitchen was just as empty, as was the living room. Kaede was alone and she believed that she had been all night. Midoriko never came in. Kaede, not sure what to make of that, panicked and just started crying, thinking that something horrible happened to her big sister.

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Next time: oh where, oh where has Midoriko spent the night?


	13. It could be trouble

I don't own these characters.

13: It could be trouble

Sesshomaru groaned as he was taken from his sleep by the sound of a cell phone going off. His sensitive ears could tell that it was Kikyo's cell phone, even though both phones were set on vibrate. He was content to let it go off since Kikyo was still sleeping soundly against him, but he thought to check it first. He grabbed the phone to see who was calling and saw that it was Midoriko's house. At first, he thought that he could let it go, thinking that it might just be the busybody big sister calling, but he considered that it could possibly be Kaede. He shook Kikyo gently until she stirred.

"Yes?" Kikyo asked in a groggy tone. Silently, she was commenting that her prince was evil for waking her up. She was worn out having worked extra hours at the medical center because Suikotsu was still missing in action. It had been almost two weeks since he had been to work, still suffering from some mysterious illness. She hoped that he was all right, but she did not try calling him to find out or anything, lest she give him the wrong idea about things.

"One of your sisters is calling you," Sesshomaru informed the exhausted doctor while putting the phone to her ear.

"Hello?" Kikyo said while closing her eyes as if she planned to go back to sleep while she was on the phone. It was a tempting idea, but it was soon about to be quickly forgotten.

"Kikyo!" Kaede screamed at the top of her lungs in a panicked tone, which caused her older sister to jump up in bed, looking alarmed. Kaede then proceeded to babble as far as Kikyo could tell.

"Kaede, slow down. Slow down and tell me what happened," Kikyo urged the teenager in a calm voice. She hoped that nothing terrible happened to her either of her sisters.

"Kikyo, Midoriko…never came home! Hasn't answered cell phone! Something's wrong!" Kaede continued on with her wailing. It was clear that she was weeping something awful while talking, which alarmed her older sister even more than her tone did.

"Okay, calm down. Midoriko never came home?" the doctor asked in an even tone.

"She didn't! I don't know where she is! She said she was going out last night, but she never came in!"

"Okay, she never came in. Have you tried to call her phone?"

"I tried! She didn't answer!"

"Well, she might just be at work and in a meeting," Kikyo reasoned. It would explain why their older sister was not answering her phone.

"This early on a Saturday?" Kaede hollered into the receiver in disbelief.

"It has happened before. Calm down, little sister. I'll try calling her," Kikyo said.

"What good will that do? I just told you I called her and she didn't answer!" the teenager pointed out.

"Well, given that some time has passed, she might answer now. Are you going to stay on the line while I call?" Kikyo inquired.

"Uh-huh."

The doctor did not even have time to dial Midoriko's number. Sesshomaru was already holding his phone to her ear; he had dialed up the eldest sister when he heard how panicked Kaede was. It was still ringing when he put it to Kikyo's ear. Kikyo was a bit curious as the phone rang three times and no one answered nor did the voicemail pick up. She was about to worry right with Kaede, but then the ringing ceased.

"Hello?" came a voice even groggier than Kikyo's had been minutes ago.

"Big sister?" Kikyo asked because she had never heard Midoriko sound so tired.

"Kikyo?" Midoriko inquired.

"Um…yes, sister. Kaede is worried for you and wishes to know where you are on this early Saturday morning," Kikyo informed the eldest.

"Kaede? Oh, dear god, what time is it?" Midoriko asked in a panic.

"I don't know," Kikyo admitted. It was too early for all of the melodramatics as far as she was concerned. She just wanted to go back to sleep against the greatest pillow in all of creation, also known as Sesshomaru.

"Oh, god. Oh, god. Oh, god," Midoriko repeated, clearly alarmed for reasons that her sister did not know and was not in the proper frame of mind to consider. "Is the baby all right?" Midoriko inquired. She could not believe that she had left their little sister, the baby of the bunch, alone all night.

"As far as I know, yes. I've got her on the other phone. She was worried about you and how you didn't answer your phone," Kikyo reported.

"Oh, god. Um…tell her I'll be home as soon as possible. Oh, god." Midoriko seemed totally mortified by what was going on.

"All right, sister. You should calm down. Nothing's wrong. She was just worried about you, so don't panic. Be calm," Kikyo said.

"All right, all right. But, tell her I'll be home in no time," Midoriko replied.

"I will. Good day, sister," Kikyo bid her sister farewell and flipped Sesshomaru's phone closed. She then turned her attention back to her phone to speak with Kaede. "Little sister, Midoriko is fine. She apologizes for putting you through such a fuss and she'll be home soon. All right?"

"Are you sure she's all right?" Kaede inquired.

"Positive. I just spoke with her. She'll be home soon. Just hold tight and please calm down," Kikyo implored the teen.

"Okay," Kaede replied with a sniffle and then they disconnected the call. Kikyo sighed and started moving, as if she was getting out of bed, which her lover thought was weird, especially considering how tired he knew she was.

"What are you doing?" the platinum-haired demon asked.

"Going to check on Kaede and wait with her until Midoriko gets home. With luck, I might even find out what happened," Kikyo answered.

Sesshomaru groaned. He had been hoping that they would spend the day in bed. He supposed that checking on Kaede was necessary, though. She seemed rather freaked out about Midoriko being out all night; yes, he had heard the whole conversation and quite clearly too. He hated to think about what had Midoriko out all night, but he doubted that it was what he thought it might be.

"I'll come with you," Sesshomaru informed his beloved, who smiled her thanks for the company.

--------------

Midoriko could not believe how irresponsible she was. She had left Kaede home alone all night. She felt horrible. She was such a terrible big sister, she mentally berated herself as she moved to get out of bed. Yes, she was in bed and she was not alone.

"Where do you think you're going?" a purr of a voice came from her right side. A naughty hand brushed against her bare thigh, which was underneath deep maroon sheets.

"I've got to get home. My little sister…" Midoriko sort of explained.

"Is a big girl. What about taking care of me, just like you did last night? I could use that sort of care again and again. So, take care of me."

Midoriko did not answer and she felt a soft body pressing against her exposed back. She tried her best to ignore the sweet feeling, but then she felt her neck being covered in gentle kisses. She sighed and turned around.

"Abi, I really don't have time for this," Midoriko said while facing the bird demon.

"You said that last night too," Abi remarked while bringing her hands to wrap around the magnificent human in her bed right now. She did not want to let Midoriko go, especially not any time soon.

"Well, I mean it now."

"No, you said that last night too," Abi said and leaned in, giving Midoriko a tender kiss on the mouth. For a few seconds, the embrace was not returned, but as time ticked away, Midoriko kissed her back. Before long, the kiss was a passionate display with both parties moaning and pulling each other closer for more skin contact. Abi practically ended up Midoriko's lap. And then, they had to pull away for accursed air.

"Okay…" Midoriko panted, trying to get in some air before making her next statement. "I really need to leave," she said.

Abi pouted, hoping that it would get to her companion. "Nothing I can say or do to change your mind?" she inquired.

"I really need to get home. My sisters are worried about me. You act like I'm leaving forever," Midoriko replied.

"Oh, no, I know you're coming back. You want more of what I got," Abi teased, smirking as she spoke. Her little human better come back once she did leave.

"You think so highly of yourself," Midoriko commented in a light tone.

"I have to be doing something right to have entrapped such a lovely creature," the demon remarked and gave Midoriko a sweet peck on the lips.

"Flatterer."

"I know, but I speak the truth. Call me later, maybe we can get together and do something," Abi requested.

"I'll call you, but I don't know about doing something. I might be in trouble for already doing something with you all night long," Midoriko remarked.

"But, you enjoyed it. And for the record, I enjoyed it too, which is why I want to see you later. We don't have to hang out all night again, but just for a little while," Abi practically begged. She really did just want to spend some time with Midoriko. She had never felt like she did at the moment.

"I'll try, if I'm not in too much trouble."

"Well, if you're not grounded, let me know," Abi quipped.

"I will, but you have to let me go first," Midoriko pointed out.

The bird demon pouted again, but she did release Midoriko. She sighed as the human female exited the bed, wrapped in one of the maroon sheets to cover her naked form. Abi thought that was odd, but adorable too. Midoriko was being so modest now, as if just a few hours ago Abi had not seen and explored her whole body with enthusiasm and fascination. She could not wait until she could do that again.

Abi had never really craved a lover's touch, but she knew that she hungered for Midoriko even more now that she had a taste. She could not believe that she longed for a human, but Midoriko was not just any human. She was different; she was special. And she wanted her back as soon as possible.

Midoriko felt the same when it came to Abi. She could not believe that she enjoyed and desired a demon, but the princess was special. She honestly wished that she could just crawl back in bed and cuddle up with the demon like she had been doing before Kikyo called. But, she had responsibilities. She had to get back to Kaede.

--------------

Kikyo and Sesshomaru arrived at Midoriko and Kaede's apartment to find the teen pacing in the living room. As soon as Kikyo was in sight, Kaede practically flung herself into her big sister's arms. Kikyo tried to soothe Kaede's nerves by rubbing her back and assuring her that Midoriko was fine and on her way home. Kaede believed her, but she would not feel totally at ease until their big sister walked in through the front door.

Sesshomaru stood back just watching the sisters. At first, he considered that Kaede was overwhelmed and overreacting to being left home alone for the first time and it probably just scared her. But then, he thought about how close the sisters were and how Midoriko and Kikyo were the world to Kaede. The teen probably would not know what to do if something happened to either of her big sisters, especially the one that she lived with. If anything, she was just frightened that something might have happened to the most important person in her life, which he could understand...somewhat anyway, but that was more than what most people would expect from him.

A few minutes after Kikyo and Sesshomaru arrived, Midoriko entered the apartment. She shouted her apology upon entering, which was unlike her, but she honest and truly was sorry for her absence. The group in the living room stepped out to see Midoriko was heading toward the bedrooms; she thought that Kaede might be in her room.

"Miko!" Kaede yelled the eldest sister's nickname and charged over to her. She grabbed Midoriko into a fierce hug before the lawyer even had a chance to turn around and face everyone.

"Kaede," Midoriko grunted because of the force that she had been hit with.

"I was so worried! I thought something happened to you!" the teenager cried into her big sister's shoulder.

"I'm sorry for worrying you," Midoriko said while returning the hug to try and reassure her sister that everything was all right. She then turned her attention to Kikyo and Sesshomaru. "What are you two doing here?" she asked the couple curiously.

"Just to make sure that Kaede's all right," Kikyo answered. "Where have you been, sister?" she inquired curiously.

Midoriko did not respond. She did not have an answer; at least not an answer she thought was acceptable. She doubted that her mouth would have cooperated with that answer anyway. Her mouth certainly would have rebelled if it had to utter the words "I lost track of time while being intimate with a very beautiful and wild female bird demon." She had to think of a lie. A good, believable lie.

"I had to rush to work very early this morning because of a misplaced brief," Midoriko replied.

"But, your bed was totally made, like you hadn't slept in it at all," Kaede pointed out.

"I made the bed before I left. I just couldn't stand looking at it so messy," Midoriko explained. She felt that was acceptable since Kaede swore up and down that she was obsessive compulsive anyway.

"And why didn't you answer your phone?" Kaede asked with a confused look on her face.

"I left it on my desk, but ended up not being in my office for a little while."

Kaede seemed appeased by those answers and her grip on Midoriko loosened, but did not leave altogether. Midoriko turned her eyes toward Kikyo and Sesshomaru, praying that they did not question those responses. The pair looked as they usually did, but that did not tell her much. They were masters at neutral expressions, after all.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Kaede said.

"I'm sorry I worried you," Midoriko apologized.

"Sorry I overreacted," the teenager replied. She was now rather embarrassed by her behavior and considered that she might have ruined everyone's Saturday.

"It's quite all right," Midoriko assured her little sister.

Kaede nodded and finally released her hold on her big sister. She then trotted away toward her bedroom since everything had worked out. Midoriko turned her attention back to Kikyo and Sesshomaru, who were just standing there. She was about to say something to them, but her cell phone went off.

Midoriko wondered who was calling her and she pulled out her phone. Her eyes nearly fell out of her skull when she saw who was getting in touch with her. She glanced at her sister and Sesshomaru and figured that they might think it was suspicious if she did not answer the call, especially considering the face that she just made because of it. She turned her back to them as she answered, not thinking that that action might be taken a certain way.

"Yes," Midoriko answered the phone in a business-type voice.

"Just checking to find out if you made it home all right," Abi said.

"I'm fine," Midoriko answered.

"Good to know. Were you grounded?" the bird demon asked as a joke.

"I have yet to find out that information. I'll call you back once I know more," Midoriko answered.

Abi did pick up on Midoriko's tone and guessed that someone was around. Probably just Kaede, she thought. So, she figured that she might have some fun at her lover's expense.

"Okay. Bye, sweetheart," Abi said and Midoriko turned a bright red. The bird demon could picture the blush because of the moment of silence and so, she started laughing.

"Good day," Midoriko said and quickly disconnected the call before Abi could say something worse, or better depending on who was asked. She turned her attention back to Kikyo and Sesshomaru, who were still just standing there.

"Is everything all right, sister?" Kikyo inquired because it seemed to her that the eldest was acting rather oddly.

"Everything's fine. Very, very fine," Midoriko answered, doing her best to sound normal.

"All right. Well, Sessho and I are going to go back home then," Kikyo informed the eldest.

"All right. See you later," Midoriko said and Kikyo nodded.

"Midoriko, perhaps next time you should leave a note," Sesshomaru advised as Kikyo turned to go to the door. He used his usual tone of voice when speaking to the eldest, so it sounded as if he was mocking her.

"There won't be a next time," Midoriko replied in a cold tone.

"You're probably right," he said and then he followed Kikyo out of the apartment.

Midoriko wondered what he meant by that. She decided not to think on it because it was not like she could ask him to clarify what he meant. She went to go take a shower and maybe find out just how horribly she had scarred Kaede by scaring her in such a way. She sighed as she moved.

--------------

Sesshomaru and Kikyo were silent on their trip back home. Kikyo focused on the road ahead of them almost as if she was driving while Sesshomaru continuously glancing at his woman. He had to ask something.

"Did you believe any of that?" Sesshomaru inquired. He doubted that she did, but he wanted to know.

"I believe she had a very good reason for telling such a blatant lie if that's what you mean," Kikyo answered.

The dog demon nodded and wondered if he should tell her the reason behind that blatant lie. Sometimes, being a dog demon was a curse and back at the apartment was one of those times, even though it had perks since he now had dirt on that busybody of an older sister. First, he had to force himself not to throw up the second that he could smell Midoriko and her scent told him exactly why she was lying. He figured that she doubted it would go over well if she admitted to leaving the baby of their trio alone because she was busy rutting with Abi.

It was stomach-turning to him to be able to smell Abi all over Midoriko because it told him what they did and then his brain had to add images to the odor. He really did not want that image in his head. Now, he was not above thinking that it was hot when two women got down and dirty, but when those two women happened to be Midoriko and Abi that just took all of the spark out of it for him. He guessed that them together for him was on the same level as two wrinkled, old people going at it.

Then he had to hear their brief conversation too; aside from the excellent sense of smell, great hearing also came with being a dog demon. He hardly believed any of his senses when he heard Abi refer to Midoriko as "sweetheart" and the lawyer blushed like an embarrassed schoolgirl. He was almost ashamed for her to have acted in such a manner.

Sesshomaru wondered if he should tell Kikyo what he knew or just leave her to figure it out. He bet that it would get Midoriko in all sorts of hot water and that would teach her to act so holier-than-thou around everyone. She had been so hard on Kikyo back when Kikyo needed her, so he considered that maybe some payback was in order. There was also the way that Midoriko treated him, so maybe he should just let the cat out of the bag. And yet, he did not say anything.

Kikyo knew that something was up. Things just did not add up, but she was not sure what was going on. She wondered what made her sister lie to them. Midoriko did not usually lie. She withheld information, but she did not outright lie. Maybe something was wrong, but she could not figure out what.

"Do you think that something could have happened between her and Abi?" Kikyo wondered out loud.

"What makes you say that?" Sesshomaru asked. He acted normal, wondering if she had quickly come to the right conclusion on her own. He hoped that she did.

"Hmm…oh, nothing," Kikyo replied when she realized that she had voiced her thoughts aloud. "I was just thinking out loud. I figured since Midoriko was acting strangely, it might have something do with the fact that her life has changed since she met Abi. I'm not sure what could have happened to make Midoriko behave so oddly, though. They're probably totally unrelated things," she explained and dismissed her ideas with a wave of her hand.

"It's probably nothing to worry about," he stated. He supposed that he would not tell her. She was an intelligent woman and he figured that she would put things together on her in due time. It was not really his business, even though it had thoroughly disgusted him.

"I think so too. I'm just glad that she was unharmed. I was nervous for a moment," Kikyo admitted with a small, sheepish smile.

"You seem embarrassed by that," he noted.

"Well, this is Midoriko we're talking about. She's the most cautious and calculative among us. It seems almost silly to think that she would be hurt or in trouble. It's almost like thinking of you being in trouble or injured," she explained.

"Could you not compare me to your busybody sister while I'm driving? We might have an accident," he joked.

"You two are so mean to each other," she said while shaking her head in a disapproving manner.

Sesshomaru only shrugged and let the subject fade away. He did not say anything about what he knew. He did not try to make any excuses for why he kept it to himself and he did not offer himself any explanations either. He just did not say anything.

--------------

"Kaede, I am truly, truly sorry for scaring you so much," Midoriko apologized for what had to be the thousandth time that morning. It was actually starting to annoy the youngest sister just a little bit.

"It's okay, sis. I just overreacted. I mean, it's really rare for me to wake up and you not be here. Actually the last time it happened, Kikyo still lived here, so I didn't freak out," Kaede reminded the eldest while sporting a huge, embarrassed grin. She was feeling extremely sheepish for her behavior and the fact that her big sister kept apologizing was not helping that feeling go away. She was willing to bet now Midoriko would never leave her alone in the apartment for more than an hour ever again.

"I should've kept better track of the time," Midoriko scolded herself. It was just so hard to think point blank last night that time was the last thing on her mind.

"Sis, it's fine!" Kaede insisted.

"It's not. What I did was horrible, unforgivable even," the eldest argued. She had left her little sister alone for over twelve hours and about half of those hours she was naked with Abi doing what many would consider unsavory things.

"Whoa, you're taking it too far, Midoriko," Kaede said. Unforgivable? Just for leaving early? Of course that was not even close to unforgivable as far as the younger sister was concerned.

"I'm not. I'll never do that again. I promise," the eldest sister vowed. She would never stay out late again, even if it was with Abi. She had responsibilities and she had to set a good example. It was not a good example for her to be grinding against a bird demon for the better part of her time out, she mentally chastised herself; although, it had been an extraordinary way to spend her evening. Still, she had priorities in life that had to come before Abi, which the princess would hate to hear, of course.

"Midoriko, I don't want you throwing away life as we know it just because I freaked out. You're being way too hard on yourself. I mean, I'm fourteen now. I can be on my own for a little while. It's not like you abandoned me in here for a week or something like that. You just stayed out late and then left out early, which is fine. I just wished you told me you were leaving, but I guess you didn't want to wake me up. It's fine, though. Next time, just tell me if you're going to be leaving earlier if I don't see you at night, okay?" Kaede proposed.

"All right…" Midoriko hesitantly agreed. She felt guilty about lying and now getting off for her transgression scott-free. It seemed so wrong.

"Well, did you have a good time out?" the teen inquired curiously. She did not get to hear about what Midoriko had done on her night out since the eldest had spent her entire time home apologizing for nothing really as Kaede looked at it now.

Midoriko thought about her night; a movie, some dinner, dancing, and ending up in Abi's room after some protesting on her end. She was convinced that Abi had some kind of spell that she was using on her for her to be losing arguments left and right and ending up doing everything that Abi wanted. They had spoken for a while over a bottle of fine wine and then Abi said something about not being able to take it anymore, which was when she flung herself on Midoriko and started a kiss that could probably be categorized as scandalous, as if it was the prologue for what else Abi had in store for them. Her shirt had been torn open, two buttons were casualties of the attack, before she could comprehend what was going on and by the time that she figured things out, it was too late; she did not want them to stop.

She had ached to be touched intimately and Abi took that agony away, replacing it with pure bliss. She had not known it was possible to feel that delighted until last night when her flesh had touched Abi's supple form. There was more to it than the passion, though. It was as if Abi had touched whatever it was that made her who and what she was and she wanted that again. She wanted it from Abi. She wanted to be with Abi.

"Midoriko, did you have a good time?" Kaede asked again since she did not get an answer.

"I had a splendid time," Midoriko finally replied, shaking herself from her thoughts on what happened last night.

"Then you should go out again. That's what Saturdays are made for," the teen replied with an amused smile.

"I would like to…" Midoriko muttered truthfully. She desired little more than to be Abi's presence again, in her arms again, and, yes, in her bed again. She just wanted to be with the princess again.

"Well, don't let me stop you. I'm going to hang out with Rin and Kohaku today anyway. Me and Rin might stay over Sesshomaru's place to get some good skating in tomorrow too, okay?" Kaede informed her sister.

"All right. Call me when you know exactly what you're going to do," Midoriko said.

"I will, as long as you answer this time," Kaede teased.

"I'll answer," Midoriko vowed.

Kaede nodded and smiled. Midoriko could not believe it, but just like that, her day was open; hell, her night was probably open. It was surreal. Almost like it was a trick, especially when Kaede ran out of the apartment before noon with her skates on one shoulder and a knapsack on the other, shouting that she was leaving now. It was as if fate wanted her to possibly repeat her mistake. One might think that she would not fall for such a move since she believed that she had committed a mistake, but ten minutes after Kaede left, she was on the phone.

"Hello, Abi," Midoriko said. She just could not help herself.

"Hey, sweetie. Are you grounded? And if you are, can't you just sneak out of your window to come see me?" Abi teased, making sure to sound like she was pouting. She honestly did want her lover to come back to her and for them to spend some time together.

"Well…I can come see you. Apparently, I'm free all day today," Midoriko informed the bird demon.

"Ohhh, can we pick up where we left off, please?" Abi requested with a purr. She could still feel those gentle hands and talented mouth working all over her body. She wanted it to go back to being a reality than a vivid memory.

"Umm…how about we go out somewhere, at least until I know I have time for that other thing?" Midoriko said.

"You are so prudish. I wonder if all humans are prudish."

"By demon standards, probably."

The princess laughed. "I guess you're right. Fine, we'll go out. Hopefully, we can have dinner together, topped off with a heavy snack," she remarked and she knew that Midoriko was blushing on the other end, which she was since she knew what the bird demon meant.

"Let's just start with meeting up," Midoriko commented.

"Well, I'm where you left me, all alone and cold. I'm even still wearing what you left me in."

"Yeah, put some clothes on and I'll come get you," Midoriko said and Abi pouted.

"I've got to get you to loosen up, sweetheart. For now, I'll go put on some troublesome clothes and imagine you taking me out of them later on," Abi remarked. Midoriko gulped; what had she gotten herself into?

--------------

Next time: Sesshomaru almost gets his day ruined while everyone else seems to be doing good.


	14. Saturday entertainment

I don't own these characters.

14: Saturday entertainment

Sesshomaru groaned as his cell phone started going off. Another Saturday interrupted, he grumbled internally. He was tempted not to answer since he had Kikyo at his mercy at the moment, underneath him practically writhing thanks to his attention. It was a wonderful, soul-moving sight in his opinion; he was certain that most men would agree with him if they could witness it. But, there was the chance that the call might be something important. He glanced over just to see who was trying to call him and saw that it was his father.

The dog demon did not feel like having his mood crushed by whatever his father had to say and decided to just let the voicemail pick up. He turned his attention back to Kikyo, who was looking at him as if asking if he forgot about her. As if such a thing was possible, he commented in his mind.

"Silly doctor," he whispered to her before leaning down for a deep, passionate kiss.

Kikyo responded by returning the kiss with fervor. She wrapped her arms around her lover, pulling him down closer to her. Sesshomaru was quite pleased with the way things were going. He was hoping for a day in bed since they were both off, but something always seemed to come up, like his phone going off again. He ignored it again; he really had no choice that time in his opinion. He doubted that there was a man alive that would even consider answering a phone when his woman was on top of him putting in some mighty fine work.

Sesshomaru did not think anything about the phone as the morning went on with them going through the same activity in different ways, but then he got a horrible reminder. The house phone went off and, thanks to their little sisters, the ring for the house phone was an obnoxious sound, in his opinion anyway. And so, when it went off, he was sort of startled and he accidentally gripped Kikyo's hips too tightly, cutting into her skin. She hissed in pain and he realized what he did.

"Sorry, beloved," Sesshomaru easily and honestly apologized, leaning down to speak into Kikyo's ear. He was in control of their activity at the moment with her underneath him.

"It's fine," she replied. "Keep going," she urged him in a breath. She was practically quivering beneath him.

He had no problem obliging and had to block out the sound of the damned telephone until it finally stopped in its own. The annoyance did not end, though. Minutes later the phone started ringing again and then was followed by his cell phone when he did not answer the house phone. It would seem that his father was determined to ruin his day, but he was just as determined to continue on with what he was doing.

"Damn it, what?" Sesshomaru growled in pure anger as he answered his mobile phone. He had managed to ignore it for the whole morning, but three hours of constant calling was pissing him off and he just wanted to get the annoyance out of the way.

"Interesting way to answer the phone," his father commented.

"What do you want, Father?" the younger demon inquired. He was completely and totally irked with his father now and that was very evident in his voice.

"Why didn't you answer earlier?"

Sesshomaru frowned and felt very, very tempted and justified in telling his father that he did not answer because he was under, over, and behind a wonder angel for the whole time that the older male had been calling, but he figured that might be a bit much. He did glance at Kikyo, who was sleeping now, which was why he decided to finally answer the phone. He really did not want to hear what his father had to say, though. He just knew that if he did not answer, then his father would keep calling and it would only make his day less than wonderful, which he felt it could be as long as he got to stay in bed with his angel all day.

"What do you want, Father?" Sesshomaru repeated.

"I want to know why it took you so long to answer your phone," he answered.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Sesshomaru replied quite seriously.

"Fine. I think you should come by the house today."

Sesshomaru glanced down at Kikyo. She seemed rather willing to grant his desire of staying in bed all day and he would be damned if he was going to be the one to mess that idea up. He made his decision right then and there.

"Maybe tomorrow," Sesshomaru said, which shocked his father. He usually came promptly when requested, like a good son was supposed, he guessed anyway.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I could come by the house tomorrow. I'm busy today. You could always tell me whatever you wish over the phone," the younger demon pointed out.

"You're rather brazen today," the father remarked.

"I suppose," Sesshomaru said because he lacked anything better to retort with and he really just wanted the conversation over already. He wanted to spend time focusing his angel, even if she was sleeping at the moment.

"I was wondering how things were going with you and Abi. Her mother called me a couple of days ago and commented on how Abi has never stayed away from home for so long, so you must be taking excellent care of her," his father informed him.

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. He doubted that was the reason that his father called. He was willing to bet that his father knew that he stopped escorting Abi around a while ago. She was now Midoriko's problem in his opinion and Midoriko seemed more than willing and happy to take the bird demon off of his hands. He was not going to complain, although he was not going to thank her either.

"I didn't know what to tell her. I doubt that she'd take it well to know that her daughter is actually being escorted around by a human female," his father continued on and he saw that coming.

"It's not just any human female," Sesshomaru pointed out.

"Oh?"

"It's Midoriko. She and Abi have become friends. You can tell her mother that she's made a friend willing to show her all of the fantastic sites of the city and that they'll take care of each other if that makes you both feel better," Sesshomaru commented.

"Abi and Midoriko?" his father echoed in a very puzzled tone.

Sesshomaru could understand why his father was perplexed. Abi was from a devout human-hating clan and Midoriko did not hide the fact that she disliked most demons, believing them to be on the same level as animals. He bet that his father would not even believe him if he told the older demon just how close the pair had gotten. He did not even want to think about that, though.

"Yes, Midoriko is taking care of Abi," Sesshomaru reported. Now get off of the damn phone, he mentally pled.

"That's not very gentleman like to leave two women on their own," his father commented.

"I'm not a gentleman, Father," he pointed out. There was also the fact that he was certain his presence would not be appreciated by the two females and he was not looking to tempt fate.

"So I've noticed. Are you sure they're all right together?"

Sesshomaru was not totally sure. He was not sure what to make of Midoriko and Abi. He just knew that they seemed to be all right with what was going, whatever unholy thing it was, so that was good enough for him. He considered it unholy because of who they were and not because they were two females.

"Well, they haven't been on the news or anything like that," Sesshomaru replied, as if that was a suitable answer.

"Why are they together?"

"They're lawyers," Sesshomaru answered in a deadpan tone.

"And?"

"They have things in common," Sesshomaru guessed. He really did not care what kept Abi and Midoriko together, but he hoped that it continued. It kept Abi away from him and gave him extra time with his beloved. It just worked out well for him and he was not looking to spoil it.

"Is that it?"

"That is my understanding of it. Is that all?" the younger demon asked because he had taken note that Kikyo's breathing had changed slightly, so he gathered that she was waking up. He did not want any distractions when that happened.

"Hmm…I suppose that will be all for now."

Sesshomaru was glad to hear that and quickly disconnected the call. He turned his attention back to Kikyo, who was waking up. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled, immediately seeing the person that merrily worn her out. He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her smiling mouth.

"Did you have a good sleep?" he inquired, pulling away from her just enough to get the question out.

"Yes. Who were you speaking to?" she asked curiously.

"My father. He was running a check on me and doing my task."

"What did you tell him?"

"I informed him that your sister had taken over," he answered.

"Did he take it well?"

"He didn't believe me as far as I could tell, but he wasn't hostile over it. So, let's let the subject drop," he requested.

Kikyo smiled slightly, which told him that she agreed with that. He leaned down and kissed her again. He was not sure what he did to have her interested in spending all day in bed with him, but he was not going to question it. He was just going to relish in it and hope that she did not have to go into work tomorrow to try to repeat it. He just hoped that his father did not call with anymore nonsense about Abi.

--------------

Abi was just getting off the phone with her mother, who called to check on her every few days at random times. She was starting to understand why she was so spoiled; her mother worried about her a lot. She always assured her mother that she was fine and she was just thoroughly enjoying the city, which was why she was had not come back home yet. Her mother seemed to understand that and did not pressure her to come home.

As soon as she put down the phone, she heard a knock at her door. She smiled to herself as she went to answer the door. She knew who was there, so she quickly opened the door and pretty much threw herself into the arms of her visitor.

"I take it I was missed," Midoriko commented before leaning down to place a gentle peck on the bird demon's lips.

"Maybe only a little," Abi replied with a small smile while pulling Midoriko into the privacy of the hotel room.

"It's good to hear," Midoriko admitted, leaning against the door while the princess pressed herself against Midoriko. It felt so good to be so close, they both thought.

"Do I get you all to myself today?" the bird demon inquired while placing a few kisses on the human's mouth and cheeks.

"Yes, you do. Kaede is staying with Rin again."

Abi smiled wickedly. She had to admit that she liked Midoriko's little sister because the teen seemed to be trying to give Midoriko some time to herself in a way that would keep the eldest sister from worrying. The little sister definitely got points for that in the bird demon's book because it meant that she got Midoriko to herself.

"Don't give me that look," Midoriko said to the demon because of her expression.

"Why not? You know you like this look," Abi commented, still smirking like a devil.

"I know what that look means. I've already made plans for today," the human stated soundly. They were going to do more than to spend their time together naked and in bed.

"I've made plans for today too. They involve you getting the hell out of those clothes," Abi remarked with a devilish and seductive look in her eyes.

"Do I look like your personal sex doll?" Midoriko teased.

"Yeah, just like her in fact," Abi replied.

"Don't you want to go out?"

"Nope. You took me out yesterday. That was good enough. Can't you tell I don't want to go out?" the bird demon inquired while rubbing up against Midoriko and caressing the human through her clothing.

Midoriko let out a long breath to keep control of herself. She really should take advantage of the situation, her mind pointed out. There were not going to be many opportunities for her to spend the entire day with Abi, being intimate and all. There was also no reason for her to act so shy around Abi considering some of the things that they had already done together. They were things that she had not done in a very long time and had not recalled them being so…freeing. She felt free when she was with Abi.

"So, how about I get you out of those annoying garments?" Abi suggested in low tone, her mouth tantalizingly close to Midoriko's own.

"I suppose…I suppose we could go out tomorrow," Midoriko muttered, her heart beating faster in her chest. Her little sister would be out tomorrow and she could take the demon princess out tomorrow.

"Or we could stay in tomorrow too," Abi proposed while working on the buttons on the shirt that was hiding such wonderful, beautiful form from her.

"Well…maybe," Midoriko whispered. She would like to make Abi happy and she knew that agreeing would. It would make her happy too, but would rather it not seem like she was with the princess for just the sex.

Abi smiled to herself. Oh, how she adored the human, she said to herself. Oh, how she adored the affect that she had on Midoriko. She even adored the affect that Midoriko had on her, even though it was like nothing that she had ever felt before. It was like being on some wonderful drug. Midoriko made her feel ecstasy in every way possible and she knew that she returned that feeling to the human.

"You are so goddamn beautiful," Abi whispered.

"I would say the same about you, but without the crude language," Midoriko commented with a soft smile as she brought her hands up to caress Abi's face. The bird demon quivered under her touch.

Abi smile and felt like she should say more, but she did not know what to say. She decided to go in for a kiss since she lacked the ability to verbally express herself. Why did the human set her soul ablaze? She could not figure it out, but she did not care. She just wanted Midoriko and she wanted her now.

--------------

Midoriko lay staring at the ceiling of Abi's hotel room. It was not the first time that she was doing such a thing. The first time that Abi caught her though, she remarked that she should change rooms and get one with a mirror on the ceiling. Midoriko had blushed a deep crimson at the suggestion.

She was thinking, as she had a habit of doing when there was nothing else to do; she was starting to consider it a bad habit because of the things that entered her mind. She was constantly asking herself what her sisters would think if they knew what she did with Abi. What would they think if they knew that she was…well, dating Abi? Not just dating Abi, but sleeping with her too.

It was wrong, so wrong, she told herself. She had given Kikyo so much trouble for dating a demon; not to mention marrying one in the not too distant past. Now, she was doing the very thing that she had been condemning for so long. And she had actually gone one better by doing it with a woman. Her sisters probably would not forgive her until the day that she died. She hoped that they never found out.

She guessed that she was ashamed of what she was doing, just not enough to cease her actions. She could not help herself. She enjoyed being with Abi. She liked going out with her and talking with her…and sleeping with her. She did not want the relationship to end, but she did not want her sisters to find out about it either.

Midoriko's thoughts were interrupted as Abi started moving against her. They had been taking a nap after a few hours of coupling and Midoriko had woken up first. It seemed that Abi was beginning to stir. Midoriko decided to check on Kaede before the princess woke up completely. She grabbed her cell phone, which was on the stand by the bed.

"Big sister, talk fast!" Kaede pled as she answered the phone.

"Kaede, you didn't answer this call while trying to perform a stunt, did you?" Midoriko inquired.

"Yeah, I'm in midair as we speak!" Kaede declared with misplaced pride in her sister's opinion.

Midoriko sighed and shook her head. She was fairly certain that Kaede lost her mind sometime ago. She wondered if the teen's other friends answered their cell phones while they were doing tricks on their skates. She was willing to bet that Rin did considering the fact that Kaede and Rin did everything the same way.

"I'll call back," Midoriko told her little sister.

"No, you don't have to. I landed perfectly!" Kaede boasted.

"I'm happy for you," Midoriko said dryly. "I'm just calling to check on you and make sure you haven't changed your plans."

"I'm fine and still staying with Rin at her house tonight," the youngest sister confirmed.

"Oh, who's that?" Abi inquired, speaking in a purr as she spotted her lover on the phone.

"Shh, it's my sister," Midoriko answered in a quiet tone, hoping that Kaede did not hear the bird demon.

"Is it the little one you won't let me meet?" Abi asked with a pout. She pretended to sound sorrowful as she spoke as if she was looking for sympathy.

"Hush," Midoriko admonished her lover.

"Is that Abi in the background?" Kaede asked curiously.

"Yes," Midoriko affirmed. It was not like her sister would know that they were in bed just from the tone that Abi was using, she told herself.

"Hi, Abi! You treat my big sister good!" Kaede screamed into the phone to the point where her sister had to move the phone from her ear.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll treat your big sister real good," Abi remarked while pressing herself into Midoriko and dragging her tongue across Midoriko's exposed shoulder.

"Umm…I'll talk to you later, Kaede. Take care," Midoriko said in rush because she was not sure what Abi would do while she was still on the phone with her baby sister and she was not in the mood to find out.

"Bye! Have fun!" Kaede replied.

"Oh, she will," Abi quipped with a smirk as the call was disconnected.

"You're so bad," Midoriko scolded her lover.

"What do you expect? I'm a demon. Besides, if I wasn't bad, I wouldn't know how to do that thing with my thumb," Abi commented and Midoriko started to blush again. Abi laughed. "Careful there, precious. You don't want to blush all your blood to your head and pass out. I mean, we still have so much time left today and we can't waste it with you being so careless," she commented.

Midoriko just blushed again. That time was because of the term of endearment used: precious. Was she really precious to Abi? Could it be true? Was she precious to someone? She had to find out.

"Abi, do you mean that?" Midoriko asked.

"Of course I mean that we don't have time to waste," the bird demon answered.

"No, not that. What you called me, did you mean that?"

"What 'precious'?" Abi inquired.

"Yes. Do you mean that?"

Abi seemed to think on it for a moment, which bothered Midoriko. And then suddenly, the bird demon smiled; it was a genuine and soft expression. She kissed the side of Midoriko's mouth and then turned the human to look her in the eye.

"Yeah, I do mean it," Abi answered soundly. Midoriko was precious to her. She had never wanted to be around someone, demon or human, like she did with Midoriko. No one ever made her feel like Midoriko did. No one showed her a good time like Midoriko did. And, no one treated her exactly how Midoriko did.

Midoriko treated her, well, she would say like a princess, but in a different manner than what she was used to. Midoriko treated her like her opinion genuinely mattered, not because she was a noblewoman, but because Midoriko cared about her. Her wellbeing mattered to Midoriko because the human female cared about her. It was not about duty with Midoriko when it came to her treatment of Abi, it was about caring and that made her precious to Abi.

"Thank you," Midoriko said.

"You don't have to thank me. Just keep doing what you're doing," Abi replied.

"I will," Midoriko vowed.

Abi smiled and leaned in for another kiss. She was not sure what it was that she was feeling, but she wanted it to continue. She wanted to stay with Midoriko for as long as she could and hoped that the feeling would last for all of the time that they were together.

"What about you?" Abi seemed to ask out of the blue, breaking the thorough kiss that they were both enjoying.

"Me?" Midoriko said in a confused tone. She found it so hard to think when she was with Abi and doing such intimate things. The bird demon thought that it was cute and a good thing that her presence and touch disrupted Midoriko's thoughts because it kept her lovely little human from worrying about so many things.

"What do you think about me?" Abi asked curiously.

"What do I think of you?" Midoriko said in a low tone. It was almost like she never thought of it, even though she had.

"Yes."

Midoriko stared at Abi as if that was going to help her collect her thoughts. What did she think of Abi? It seemed like it might take so long to speak on it. But, she could see in Abi's eyes that she needed to say something soon.

"What do I think of you?" Midoriko caressed Abi's cheek. "You're the most incredible person, demon, human, male, female, all of that, I've ever met. I feel amazing when I'm with you. Your smile brightens my day and makes me feel light. Your laughter is like the sweetest music I've ever heard. When I'm with you, whether like this or just out on a date, I feel…complete. I don't really understand it, but I don't want to. I don't even try to rationalize it. I just know that when I'm with you, I never want to leave. You're a queen to me," she answered.

Abi did not mean to look as affected by the words as she did. She seemed ready to burst into tears. She threw her arms around Midoriko's neck and embraced the human tightly. Midoriko returned the hug.

"That was so corny," Abi said with the hope of seeming more like herself and less emotional.

"Well, I'm new to this romance thing. Give me sometime and I'll try to get less corny," Midoriko remarked.

"I'll give you all the time you need," the bird demon replied.

Midoriko gave a small smile as thanks. She did not smile very often, but she did it most of the time while she was with Abi. She did not understand why the princess was able to make her act so unlike herself, but she did not care. The whys of anything did not matter to either of them.

"All right, enough mushy stuff. Time to get sweaty again," Abi remarked and she started a passionate kiss before Midoriko could respond. It felt so good, they both noted. They hoped that the feeling always remained.

--------------

"You know, I'm happy Midoriko has a friend now that she wants to spend time with because we get to spend time together too," Rin commented with a smile as she and Kaede walked toward a corner store. They were going to buy some candy while Kohaku and Shippo waited on a pizza pie that they had ordered. They had been skating all day and now they were hungry.

"I'm glad too. She really needed a friend. I hope they stay friends forever, like us," Kaede replied with a grin. Rin grinned in return.

"That would be cool. She would hang out with her friend and then we can hang out like this and then go to my house or Sesshomaru's place. Midoriko has a lot of catching up to do in hanging out, after all," Rin remarked with a laugh.

"That's why I asked to stay with you. That way Midoriko would feel okay with staying out way late. I don't want her to always worry about me," Kaede explained.

"I know. She does worry a lot. She's like Sesshomaru, way overprotective."

Kaede laughed a bit. "They are really overprotective," she concurred.

They really did not see why their eldest siblings did not get along because they were so much alike. Midoriko and Sesshomaru were both overprotective to the point where it was rather annoying to them. Their eldest siblings also would not listen to them if they tried to explain why they were going to do a stunt. Their eldest siblings also had an "I told you so" look that they gave when the teens did something that they had been advised against doing. They were hoping that their eldest siblings calmed down as they grew up.

"Maybe Midoriko will cool off now that she's got a friend," Kaede commented.

"I thought the same thing when Sesshomaru start going out with Kikyo. It hasn't happened yet," Rin said.

"You just want to ruin my hopes and dreams, huh?" Kaede playfully pouted.

Rin smiled. "Never dream of it," she replied.

The pair laughed and continued on their way. They were happy that Midoriko had a friend to spend time with now. Kaede used to express worry for her eldest sister and the fact that she did not have any close associates. So, now that Midoriko had someone to spend time with, she figured that it would do Midoriko good. She honestly hoped that everything went well between Midoriko and Abi.

----(New day)

Abi was putting the finishing touches on herself as she was getting ready for a date with Midoriko. She put on a touch of lipstick and some perfume. She was then pulled away from her tasks as her cell phone went off. She hoped that it was not Midoriko saying that she was going to be late or something, which happened every now and then. When she got to her phone, she saw that it was her mother.

"Hello, Mother," Abi answered the call, trying her best to sound normal, even though she was giddy. She was always like that before a date with Midoriko.

Her expression started to drop as her mother spoke. She was at a loss for words and the few confirming sounds that she did make betrayed her mood. She sounded heartbroken while making weak protests to her mother's words. In the end, she muttered a feeble "yes, Mother" before disconnecting the call.

Abi put her phone down and then she felt something running down her cheek. She wiped it away and realized that it was a tear. She was crying.

--------------

Next time: find out why Abi is crying and what it has to do with Midoriko.


	15. Walked out of heaven

I don't own these characters.

15: Walked out of heaven

A knock at the door distracted Abi from her crying. She tried wiping her eyes because she knew who was at the door for her. She had a date with Midoriko and she had been looking forward to it, but her mother had called a couple of minutes ago and ruined everything as far as she was concerned. Well, she could not just leave Midoriko in the hallway, her mind pointed out. So, she opened the door.

"Hey, lovely, ready to go?" Midoriko inquired as the door opened and then she caught sight of Abi, who was looking off to the side, trying her best to hide her face. Midoriko thought that was odd. "What's wrong?" Midoriko inquired with deep concern in her voice.

"It's nothing. Let's just go," Abi answered with a sniffle. She was trying her best to dry her tears. She did not want anything to ruin her night with Midoriko, but it seemed like she could not cease weeping.

"It's not 'nothing.' What's wrong?" Midoriko asked softly as she stepped further into the room, closing the door behind her.

"Nothing."

"Tell me," Midoriko gently ordered as she took the princess into her arms and held her in a reassuring manner.

"I don't want to," Abi whispered her response.

"Tell me."

"My mother called."

"Is that all?" Midoriko asked. She did not see why a call from her mother had Abi so upset. The princess typically seemed rather happy to hear from her mother.

"That's not all. She told me…she told me…she told me that I have to come back home," the bird demon reported, still speaking in a low voice and crying.

Midoriko went rigid from that news. They had been having such a good time together that she forgot that Abi lived overseas. She thought that they would be able to go on as they were indefinitely because she had had forgotten why Abi was even in the city. Abi had not been helping her memory because she had been acting like she was just going to stay in the city for the rest of her life.

"When do you have to go back?" Midoriko managed to ask in a low tone. She was trying to hide how hurt she was now. She did not want to lose Abi, but she knew that the bird demon had to go back home sometime.

"Tomorrow. She booked a flight for me," Abi answered.

"Tomorrow?" Midoriko echoed in a shocked voice. That soon? It was not even like she had time to adjust to the idea that Abi was going to be gone; Abi was just going to be gone.

"Yeah, tomorrow. In the afternoon," the bird demon finished.

Midoriko nodded to that information because she did not trust her voice. She was not sure what she might say, but she had a feeling that it would have something to do with begging Abi to stay. She could not do that. Abi had a responsibility to uphold and she would let the bird demon do that without burdening her with emotional attachments. She would just have to let Abi go because that was the right thing to do.

"Will you stay with me tonight?" Abi requested in an almost scared voice. She was a bit nervous about asking such a thing because she thought the human might turn her down; after all, Midoriko was always worried about leaving her sister alone for the whole night.

"Of course," Midoriko replied soundly, as if that was the only answer that she could give.

Abi smiled and returned the hug that Midoriko was giving her. Her tears finally ceased. At least she was going to get to spend her last day in town with someone so precious to her. Still, she wished that she could stay.

"Do you still want to go out?" Midoriko asked.

"Yes. Let's not let this spoil the evening," Abi answered. She wanted to have a good time with Midoriko while she could.

Midoriko nodded and then she held Abi for as long as the princess seemed to need it. Abi then walked off to the bathroom because she had to clean her face. Midoriko took out her cell phone while waiting. She had to call Kaede and tell her that she was going to be out for the night.

"Hey, big sister," Kaede answered the call.

"Good day, Kaede. Tell me, do you suppose you could stay with Kikyo tonight?" Midoriko requested.

"I don't see the problem with that. You're going to be out really late?" Kaede guessed. It seemed logical enough to her. Midoriko would not want her to be home alone for too many hours of the night, especially after that panic incident that she had.

"Yes," the eldest confirmed.

"Okay, well, I'll call Kikyo and tell her I'm staying over there. If something comes up, I'll call you back," Kaede said.

"All right," Midoriko agreed. "Good day, little sister."

"Bye and have fun," Kaede replied.

Midoriko disconnected the call. She was going to try to have fun, even though she knew that at the same time tomorrow, she was going to be alone again. Abi was going to be on her way home and she was not sure if Abi was interested in trying for a long distance relationship. It was not something that they had talked about. Maybe they would talk about it tonight. She hoped that they would.

--------------

"Hey, Rin, guess where I'm staying tonight," Kaede said with a grin.

"You're staying at Sesshomaru and Kikyo's place again?" Rin asked in disbelief. They were hanging out in a park with Kohaku and Shippo as usual, but they were not skating. They had to take a break because they had each injured themselves their last time out. They could not believe that; what were the odds of all of them hurting themselves in one outing?

"That I am," Kaede answered, still grinning up a storm.

"I'm staying too then," Rin declared. She did not even bother to call to ask if she could. It was known that if one of them was staying over, they both were actually staying over. It was expected.

"You two have too many places to stay," Shippo commented. The girls had three happy homes to hop from; he had never heard of such a thing.

"You can never have too many places to stay," Kaede argued.

"Really," Rin concurred. To them, having three homes to go to just showed that they were deeply loved by a lot of people and that was a good thing.

"You two don't think you're in your brother and sister's way when you're over there?" Kohaku asked curiously. He knew that sometimes he felt like he was in the way of his sister's relationship when she had her boyfriend over their house.

"No," the girls answered simultaneously.

"You two just have no shame, huh?" Shippo remarked.

"Hey, if they didn't want us over, they'd tell us," Kaede replied.

Rin and Kaede doubted that their siblings would ever say that they did not want them over, at least without offering up some really great reason. They had yet to be turned down when they wanted to stay over and their siblings always seemed to like it when they come over, like it in their own way of course.

So, the girls went to Sesshomaru and Kikyo's apartment when they were done hanging out with the boys. The dinner was done, which they expected. They did go take showers and get into some pajamas before eating supper. They then flopped down on the couch, lounging around the place like they owned it, even eating hug slices of cake in the living room. That did not bother Sesshomaru or Kikyo, as long as they did not get any crumbs in the room and as long as they left some cake, in Kikyo's case anyway.

"Hey, Kaede, did big sister say how long she was going to be staying out?" Kikyo inquired curiously.

"Nope, just said she was going to be out late," Kaede answered.

"Okay," Kikyo said.

It was a weekday and that was why Kikyo asked how long Midoriko might be out. She thought that it was strange for their big sister to be staying out late on a night that she had work the next day. She supposed that she could just ask Midoriko, but she would do that later. She did not want to interrupt whatever it was her big sister was doing.

She decided to go to see what her beloved was doing. He was in his studio, working on a painting. She came up behind him and wrapped her arms around him, resting her hands on his chest. He pretended as if he did not notice her.

"Oh, angel, I think you'll have to have lunch with your sister tomorrow," Sesshomaru said.

"I have no problem with that, but I might have to pry her from Abi's cold, dead hands," Kikyo remarked.

"No, that won't be necessary. As it turns out, Abi is being called back home. Her mother needs her for their family business," he explained.

"Oh, so she's going back home? What will Midoriko do with her time now?" Kikyo wondered out loud.

Sesshomaru coughed suddenly as a smart-aleck remark came to mind that he could not share. He was surprised that he had even thought of such a horrible thing. His unexpected coughing fit stunned his woman and she moved to pat his back a bit. He almost laughed because of the action and stopped working on his painting long enough to put her hands back around him neck and on his shoulders.

"So, Abi is going back home. What does that have to do with you?" Kikyo asked curiously.

"My father ordered me to be the one to take her to the airport," he explained.

"He loves to torment you, doesn't he?" she teased.

"I should say so."

"I wonder…" Kikyo said and she trailed off.

"What?"

"Do you suppose that Abi leaving tomorrow explains why we have the girls tonight? I mean, perhaps that's why Midoriko is going to be out rather late tonight," Kikyo reasoned.

Sesshomaru considered why they had the girls and he figured he knew why Midoriko was going to be out late. He was not too sure what to make of Abi and Midoriko and he had not thought much on them since he found out. He did wonder what was going to happen now that Abi was leaving. He doubted that the bird demon would think on Midoriko once she was out of sight, but he was not too sure about Midoriko.

If Midoriko was anything like Kikyo, and Sesshomaru was certain that they were fairly close to being twins, then Midoriko was going to be thoroughly injured when Abi left. She was probably going to take up a lot of Kikyo's time, trying to get over what she had gone through with Abi. Damn it, he mentally cursed. Just when he thought that he was getting his angel to himself, he going to have to go back to sharing her and probably more so than he had been doing before.

"I would guess that Abi leaving and Midoriko planning to be out late might be related to each other," the dog demon commented.

"I hope they keep in touch with each other," Kikyo said.

Sesshomaru did not respond. He doubted that they would keep in touch with each other. Midoriko was probably some kind of fling for Abi since she was so far away from her mother's prying eyes. She was probably curious about what it was like to be with a human. He was not sure what to make of Midoriko's behavior, though and he was not looking to figure it out either.

----(Next day)

Abi did not want to wake up, even though she was already there. She had hoped the morning would never come; hell, she had prayed for it last night. But, time marched forward and screwed her over as far as she was concerned. Well, she was up and there was something that she could do, which was snuggle up to her precious lover and she did just that.

Midoriko actually was already awake when Abi regained consciousness. She was gently caressing Abi's back and thinking about how tomorrow she was going to wake up alone. It was a bittersweet feeling to have Abi with her now, but that she was not going to be there come sunset.

"Morning," Midoriko finally said.

"Morning," Abi replied and she pushing herself up in order to place a lingering kiss on Midoriko's mouth.

"Should we get up?" the human female inquired.

"No, I don't want. I want to screw your brains out," Abi answered honestly, smiling slightly as she spoke.

"But, you have a flight to catch."

"Don't remind me. I'm all packed thanks to your help and the plane doesn't leave until three, so we have all morning. I want to enjoy it," the bird demon comment while rubbing herself up against Midoriko.

Midoriko groaned. "Are you sure?"

"Of course I am. Besides, you know you want me to keep this up," Abi remarked while continuing to move against Midoriko.

"…Yeah," Midoriko moaned.

"I know you do. I know what you like, precious," Abi said before going in for another kiss.

--------------

Kikyo made sure that Kaede and Rin got ready for school and Sesshomaru drove everyone to where they needed to be. He was going to walk Kikyo into the medical center as he had formed a bit of doing, especially when Suikotsu and his friends came back. But, the group had wisely stayed away from Kikyo since then. They did not even hang out in front of the clinic anymore. It seemed that they had learned their lessons.

After dropping the ladies off where they needed to be, Sesshomaru went to work for the a few hours. He did not get much done and left at noon to go pick up Abi. He left at noon just in case she was not ready to go. He figured that she seemed like the type that would need the extra time to get ready.

It took him nearly thirty minutes to get to the hotel. He went to the door and knocked. He heard a confused "what the hell?" on the other side of the door and knew that it was Abi's voice. He did not think anything of it until he started to catch scents around the hall. He could smell Midoriko in the hall.

"What?" Abi huffed through the door.

"I'm here to take you to the airport," Sesshomaru replied.

"Holy shit," Abi muttered as she realized what was happening. She turned around and looked at Midoriko, who was still lying in the bed. "It's dog-boy," the princess whispered.

"No way," Midoriko mumbled.

"He's taking me to the airport apparently. His father is probably making him. What should I do?" the bird demon inquired.

"Tell him I'm taking you to the airport," Midoriko answered.

"Okay," Abi agreed and turned her attention back to the door. "Um…Sesshomaru, I already have a ride to the airport."

"I'm sure you do. Still, my father expects me to see you off," he replied.

"But, I have a ride," she insisted. "Boy, do I have a ride," she muttered and cast a lecherous glance at Midoriko.

"I'm sure you do. Look, Abi, you know how I feel about talking through the door," he said. It was irksome and beneath him.

"Um…but, I…um…"

"You're not alone," he gathered.

Damn that dog nose, Abi cursed internally. She was surprised, though. He made it through the hall and to the door, even though he smelled that. Wait, then that meant that he knew who she was with. She was not sure how she felt about that. She doubted that he would make a big deal about it since he was dating a human, but she knew that Midoriko did not want anyone to know about them.

"Look, Sesshomaru, could you just do one good thing in your life and just go away?" Abi requested.

"I cannot. I have to see you to the airport," he replied.

"Why do you have to be such an ass?" she demanded to know.

Sesshomaru did not respond, but he did not leave either. He was not enjoying standing outside of the room, being able to smell what went on in the room after all. His father owed him big time in his opinion just for the smell alone and then there was the fact that he was going to have to look Midoriko in the face when she came out of the room. Unless, there was some way out of the place aside for the front door, which he doubted.

--------------

"Is he still out there?" Midoriko inquired.

"Yeah, I don't think he's leaving," Abi answered.

"Damn," the human muttered.

"Oh, swear words. You're trying to turn me on, aren't you?" the bird demon commented with a dirty smirk on her face.

"We don't have time for that anymore. What are we going to do? You want him to take you to the airport instead?"

"Hell no! I want to spend all of the rest of my time here with you and I'm not letting Muttly out there ruin it. Look, he already knows you're here, so him seeing you walk out with me isn't going to be much of a shock," Abi pointed out.

Midoriko nodded. He did know that she was there because of his nose, she reminded herself. Thanks to his nose, he might even know what they had been doing, she told herself. Oh, no, she silently gulped. What if he did know? What if he told Kikyo about what she was doing? She could see him doing that as payback for how she treated him. Oh, she was so screwed.

"Come on, precious. Let's at least get ready. We could take a shower together," Abi suggested, which threw Midoriko's thoughts off.

The bird demon grabbed her lover before Midoriko could reply and pulled her toward the bathroom. They went to clean up and get dressed. As they went to the door, before opening it, they exchanged one more kiss. When they were both breathless, they pulled away and opened the door to exit their Eden and reenter the real world. Not to mention face Sesshomaru.

The dog demon appeared totally unaffected by the emergence of two ladies. He did not cast them any kind of hateful looks or anything to let them know that he even cared about what was going on. Midoriko was still a bit nervous about that, but Abi did not seem to care.

"So, dog breath, how about carrying my bags for me?" Abi said with an attitude that he expected.

"I think I'm just to see you to the airport," Sesshomaru replied.

"Why are you so uncooperative all the time?" the bird demon huffed.

"Because I'm not your servant. We've been through this," he stated.

"Yeah, I pointed out that my servants aren't as sexually ambiguous as you are," she remarked.

"Let's just go," he said with a sigh.

Abi smiled, as if she was the victor in their little tirade. She grabbed one of her bags while Midoriko was kind enough to get the other two. They walked off; Sesshomaru in front of them as he had no desire of being downwind of the couple.

--------------

Sesshomaru stood off to the side at the airport while Abi and Midoriko spent their final hour together. He was not out of earshot because it would have been hard for him to be out of earshot and still keep an eye on the couple. He just made it a point not to listen to their conversation.

"So, is this it?" Midoriko asked curiously.

"No, this isn't it," Abi replied, or so she hoped.

"So, you'll call sometime?"

"Of course and you make sure you call me. I'll try to come back in a couple of months. I mean, between you and me, I don't do much for my mother's company and only have work when something goes wrong. Things don't usually go wrong because no one wants to deal with my mother, so I should be able to come back soon," Abi explained.

"I hope so."

They continued carrying on their conversation until the last moment. As final farewell, Abi leaned in for a kiss, but noticed that Midoriko was focused on Sesshomaru, who was leaning against a wall and pretending to be focused on the ceiling. Abi knew what was going through Midoriko's head, but she did not think that there was anything to be scared of.

"Don't think about him, precious. He might be a pompous ass, but I don't think he's going to tell anyone," Abi whispered in Midoriko's ear.

"How can you be sure?" Midoriko asked.

"I can't, but I can't picture him just saying something to anyone about this. It's not like he cares. He won't tell anyone, so how about giving me my kiss and I can have something to regret when I do get on that plane?" Abi suggested with a smirk, even though she was serious. She was going to regret getting on that plane, but it never crossed her mind to miss that flight.

Midoriko nodded; it was not like it mattered anyway. Sesshomaru knew whether he witnessed it with his eyes or not. He probably trusted his nose more than his eyes anyway. She supposed that she was just going to have to hope that he was not the ass that she and Abi swore he was.

Midoriko embraced Abi and then planted the sweetest, most passionate kiss ever on her lips. It was a strange sight to behold and not because they were two females kissing; something like that did not even register on demons' radars. It was the fact that they were a human and a demon that caught stares from everyone, but they could care less than nothing. They were the only two people that mattered in the world at the moment, to them anyway. They did not pull away from each other until absolutely necessary for air.

"Take care, princess," Midoriko said, trying her best to not sound sorrowful that the bird demon was leaving. She was not doing a good job at it. Abi was going to come back, she told herself to hopefully ease the pain that was coursing through her at the moment. She wanted Abi to stay with her forever.

"You too, precious," Abi replied, also trying her best to not sound sorrowful or regretful. She really did not want to get on that plane, but she did turn to board on the plane on time. Once she out of sight, Sesshomaru approached Midoriko.

"Let's go," he said.

"Sesshomaru—" Midoriko started to say.

"I was only here because my father ordered me to see her on the plane. I saw her on the plane. There is nothing else to report on," he stated.

"And—" she once again tried to speak, but he interjected.

"There is nothing else to report on," he repeated. He was not a gossip, after all.

Midoriko sighed in relief and smiled at him just a little bit. "Thank you, Sesshomaru."

He only glanced down at her. He was surprised that she was thanking him and smiling at him. He then turned his eyes forward.

"You let me have Kikyo for the rest of the week and we can call it even," he stated. Midoriko seemed shocked by that news and then she just nodded. "But, for your sake, I hope you don't expect anything from her," he added.

"Her?" she echoed.

"Abi."

"You don't know her," Midoriko argued. She did not want to hear anything from him about the bird demon. It was all right for her to expect things from Abi. Abi would not let her down, she convinced herself.

Sesshomaru did not reply. He did not know Abi, no. But, she did not know Abi either and from what he gathered, she might have taken more away from their time together than Abi did. As a demon, there was always the high chance that Abi was in it for the pleasure and nothing more. As the daughter of the leader of the bird demon clan, Abi could not put too much meaning in the relationship anyway. There was no way her mother would accept her having a relationship with a human. Abi was probably already forgetting about Midoriko, he thought.

Of course, Midoriko was no fool and she did harbor the fear that as soon as Abi got on that plane, she was out of the demon's thoughts. Perhaps, she had only been a toy for the princess, she considered. But, as she thought on it, she recalled the emotions that she could see in Abi's eyes and hear in Abi's voice. It had to be more than a fling, she told herself. And she truly believed that she was going to see Abi again.

--------------

Abi sat in her seat on her way home. She had a small bag in her lap; it was going to entertain her for the long flight home. She opened it and pulled out a playbill. It was from a show that Midoriko had taken her to. Then there was a small tee-shirt that Midoriko had brought for her. She took it out and held it to her nose; it still smelled like Midoriko. That was one special little human there, she commented mentally as she smiled to herself.

"Mother, why'd you have to go and spoil my good time?" Abi sighed.

--------------

Next time: Midoriko admits something deep to her sisters.


	16. Come clean

I don't own these characters.

16: Come clean

Kaede was worried. Midoriko had not been out in over a week. The youngest sister had been informed that Midoriko's friend had to go back home, so that explained why she had not been out. She supposed that it also explained why her big sister seemed so depressed, but Midoriko seemed really down and out. Kaede did not totally understand why Midoriko seemed so sullen, almost miserable.

A couple of times recently, Kaede had walked by Midoriko's room and heard something that sounded suspiciously like crying. She did not know what to make of that. She did not think that an adult should be weeping over the fact that her friend went back home. It seemed a bit much, even if it was the only friend she had ever known Midoriko to have.

"Kikyo, do you think it's weird for someone to cry if their friend moved away?" Kaede asked curiously. She had been so bothered by the sounds of their sister sobbing that she went to Kikyo's job to try to talk about it. She had taken the bus there after school; Rin was not with her because she had a dentist appointment.

"Well, perhaps not for someone your age," Kikyo answered. They were in her office. She did think that it was weird for Kaede to come to her job because it had never happened since she started working in the medical center. Usually, Kaede had things to do after school, mostly skating and she was not one to pass that up to take the thirty minute bus ride to Kikyo's job instead of just waiting until later and calling or going over to Kikyo's home.

"Well, what about for someone your age?" the teen inquired.

"Someone my age?" the elder sister echoed, almost as if she did not understand. It seemed odd to her that someone her age would cry because a friend moved away.

"Maybe a little older than you."

"Has big sister been crying?" Kikyo asked since she guessed that was what Kaede was dancing around with her questions.

"Well…maybe a little," Kaede admitted with a hand gesture to go along with her words.

"Are you serious?" Kikyo asked in disbelief. She could not wrap her mind around their big sister weeping over almost anything at all, especially not for the reason that Kaede was implying.

"Yes."

"Because Abi is gone?" Kikyo inquired.

"I'm guessing. I try not to listen at the door…" the teenager trailed off.

"But, you do anyway."

"Well, she's crying! What do you expect me to do?" Kaede inquired. She was only human for crying out loud and their elder sister was weeping. It was unusual, so she could not help trying to investigate a little bit.

"Okay, so is she upset because Abi had to go home?"

"I guess. Maybe you should talk to her," the teen suggested.

"I suppose I could do that. I haven't seen her all this week. I could come over tonight, though," Kikyo stated.

"That should be good. I mean, it's really weird for her to be crying and everything," Kaede commented.

Kikyo nodded in agreement. It was beyond peculiar for their big sister to cry at all. The last time that she recalled Midoriko weeping was when their parents died. Something serious must be going on and she was going to find out what.

--------------

A knock at the door shocked Midoriko. She sat up rigidly in her bed; she had been spending a lot of time in her bedroom lately. She wiped her face and granted entry to whoever was at her door, thinking that it was just Kaede. Her eyes went wide with surprise when Kikyo entered her bedroom.

"Are you so stunned to see me?" Kikyo inquired. It was unlike Midoriko to be surprised about someone's appearance since they had the ability to sense presences.

"I was…" Midoriko could not even think of an excuse. There was no excuse and she was very surprised to see the middle sister standing in her doorway.

"What's wrong, sister?" Kikyo asked as she moved deeper into the room and sat down at the foot of the bed.

"Nothing…" her voice was weaker than her lie.

"It's something."

Midoriko looked at the middle sister and wondered if it was possible that Sesshomaru told her. She had not seen Kikyo in over a week, so it was plausible that Sesshomaru had told her what he knew and she had come to reveal it all, to rub it in her face. Midoriko then shook her head; her sister was not like that, she reminded herself. Kikyo was not spiteful, she told herself.

"What's troubling you?" Kikyo inquired with concern in her voice.

"It's nothing," Midoriko insisted.

"I'm not leaving here until you tell me what it is," the doctor stated soundly. She really had no plans to leave until she learned the truth. It was that simple.

Did Kikyo want her to confess her horrible sin, Midoriko wondered. It seemed that the eldest thought what was happening now was a set up, a way to embarrass her. She refused to give in. She was not going to be caught in anyone's trap.

"If it's about Abi, you can tell me about it," Kikyo said in a gentle voice.

"He told you, didn't he?" Midoriko asked in an almost accusing tone, which confused her younger sister.

It was almost as if Midoriko was angry with Kikyo, which was beyond the doctor because she could not figure out why her older sister would be upset with her. She had not done anything, after all. She was just there, trying to help, like sisters were supposed to do with each other.

"Told me? Who told me what?" Kikyo inquired in a bit of a perplexed tone.

"Sesshomaru told you, didn't he?" Midoriko demanded to know.

"What would Sessho know about you that he would need to tell me?" Kikyo countered. The discussion had taken an extra-weird turn in her opinion because it seemed that her lover had some kind of information on her sister. Could he be the reason she had been crying recently? Kikyo doubted it; he would never be malicious to her sister enough to make the older female weep.

"He didn't tell you?" Midoriko asked in a suspicious tone. Perhaps Kikyo was just playing innocent, she thought.

"Obviously not, but you're going to tell me now or I'll just go ask him and he's going to tell me eventually. After all, I have ways of making him talk," Kikyo remarked in a rather serious tone.

Midoriko was ready to call Kikyo's bluff, but she knew that she had already given herself away. Kikyo would be able to get a detailed account from Sesshomaru and she probably did know every single way to get him to talk and more than likely was not afraid to do them. Midoriko sighed.

"I truly don't want to talk about this," Midoriko said, as if that was acceptable.

"You don't have to bear this alone. We're here for you, like you're always there for us," Kikyo replied.

Midoriko frown; she was scared that Kikyo would be there for her like she had been for Kikyo. There was the way that she ignored the middle sister when she had gotten married to the awful hanyou and then there was the way that she abandoned Kikyo because of her affair with Sesshomaru. She had not been there for her younger sister. She had left when things got rough, allowing Kikyo to be put in all sort of harm and through all sorts of agony that Kikyo had to bear through on her own.

"I don't want to lose you again," Midoriko said to Kikyo. She spoke in a sorrowful tone, as if she had already lost her sister again.

"I would never leave you unless that's what you wish me to do and you know that. I'm not here to judge you, sister. I just want to be the one that you could cry on if necessary. I want to be here for you when you need me. We're all we have left, so tell me. Trust me," Kikyo urged in a gentle tone.

"I don't want you to hate me again," Midoriko sniffled.

"Miko, you know I could never hate you. Now, tell me what's bothering you, please. I only want to help."

"You can't help."

"How do you know that? Tell me and then we'll see if I can help."

"She's not taking my calls," Midoriko confessed while choking back a sob. She did not want to break down in front of Kikyo. She was supposed to be the strong one. She was the eldest, after all.

"She's not taking your calls? You mean Abi?" Kikyo asked curiously.

At the sound of the name, Midoriko coughed; it was another attempt to keep in a sob. Her eyes were watering, though. Kikyo was not sure what to make of her big sister's behavior, but she knew that she had to be supportive. She moved closer to Midoriko and put her arm around Midoriko's shoulder. She pulled Midoriko to her.

"She hasn't called like she said she would and she's not taking my calls. She hasn't answered any of my calls or texts or anything. Why would she do that?" Midoriko asked the air more than Kikyo and tears began to fall.

"I don't know. Maybe she just needs sometime getting herself together at home," Kikyo replied as she began to realize that things were more serious than she or Kaede could have guessed. There was something more to Abi and their big sister, she suspected.

"It's been almost two weeks, Kikyo," Midoriko pointed out.

"Some people take more time than others. I'm sure she'll call or answer you back sometime soon."

"I don't think so," Midoriko argued. She had probably just been a toy for Abi. She had been a plaything for a demon. How could she have been so foolish? She felt so completely and utterly stupid.

"I'm sure that's the case. I mean, she really likes you. She was hogging you from your sisters, after all while she was here," Kikyo remarked in a lighthearted tone. "Keeping you out at insane hours of the night and everything."

"I'm sorry for my terrible behavior," Midoriko apologized, now believing that she had been an irresponsible idiot for spending all of that time with Abi and it turned out that she meant nothing to the bird demon.

"There's no need to be. You deserve to go out just as much as any of us, so your behavior was not terrible. In fact, it was just what Kaede and I wanted you to do. You need to socialize and we were glad that you found someone that you connected with," Kikyo explained.

Midoriko looked at her sister. Did Sesshomaru tell Kikyo? Was Kikyo trying to say that it was all right?

"Sister, do you know?" Midoriko asked.

"I'm only guessing. Why don't you tell me," the middle sister urged in an understanding tone.

Midoriko looked away. She did not want to say it. She really did not want to speak on it. She wished that she could just leave Kikyo to wonder, but she was in so deep and the burden was so heavy. She needed to let it go.

"Kikyo…I don't want you to hate me. I don't want the baby to hate me either," Midoriko said, speaking in a low voice, as if she was scared to talk any louder. She really did not want her sisters to shun her. They were all she had left, after all. She needed them.

"We would never hate you, so you can tell me," Kikyo assured her big sister. Her voice sounded so honest and sincere. There really was no way for her to ever hate either of her sisters in her opinion. She wanted her sisters to be able to tell her anything, just like she wanted to be able to tell them anything.

"I don't think I can," the eldest murmured.

"Sure you can. It's all right, Miko. Trust me. Trust us. It's all right," Kikyo tried to assure her big sister.

Midoriko swallowed and told herself that she might as well let it out. Kikyo did not seem to be out to make her feel awful about what happened. Maybe talking about it would help anyway. Maybe talking about it would make her feel better and it would get her to stop crying. She just wanted to stop feeling like such a hypocrite and a loser.

"Kikyo, I had…I had…I have feelings for Abi," Midoriko admitted, attempting to sound strong, so that it would seem less wrong, but she just sounded tired and a little relieved. It did feel like some weight was taken off of her by letting that secret out.

Kikyo did not react to the news, although she had been guessing that was the reason her big sister was acting the way that she was. She now wondered if Midoriko and Abi had had a romantic relationship and if so, she wondered if her sister had somehow fallen for the demon's charms or if it was something different from that. So many questions and she was not sure if it was an appropriate time to ask them.

"Deep feelings?" Kikyo asked.

"Yes," Midoriko confirmed.

"And she led you to believe that she returned those feelings?"

"She did. She said I was precious to her. If that was the case, why won't she take or at least return my calls?" Midoriko inquired as tears began falling from her eyes. It hurt so much that she could not keep the tears in, even though she hated to cry in front of her sister.

"Give her time, sister. Perhaps she just needs to adjust to being without you. I'm sure you mean just as much to her as she does to you. She did spend all that time with you, after all. She always wanted to be with you while she was here. Did she even want to leave you when she had to?"

"No…"

"See, so I'm sure she feels the same about you. Just give her some time before you go all to pieces and question her heart."

Midoriko nodded. Those words did make her feel somewhat better. Maybe she did need to give Abi a little more time before she thought that their time together did not mean anything to the bird demon. She sniffled and wiped her tears away; she was glad now that she had told Kikyo.

"Um…sister, could you bring Kaede in here? I have something I want to tell both of you," Midoriko said.

"All right," Kikyo replied.

The doctor rose to her feet and walked out of the room. Midoriko took a deep breath while she was alone and silently said a quick prayer. That was all she had time to do as Kikyo and Kaede went into the room.

"So, what happened?" Kaede inquired, hanging on Kikyo's back for no particular reason other than the fact that they were both there at the moment.

"I have something I want to tell you both. I mean, you deserve to know," Midoriko said.

"You're taking us on a dream vacation?" Kaede joked to lighten the mood, hoping that it would help.

Midoriko laughed a bit. "No, I don't think any of us have the time for that at the moment. No, I want to tell you all something about me."

"She's an alien," Kaede whispered as a joke to Kikyo.

"It would explain a lot," Kikyo remarked with a small smile, looking to keep Kaede relaxed about the situation. She did not want the teen to worry anymore than she already had.

"I'm not an alien. No, what I want to tell you has something to do with why I never go out and why I don't date. I'm a…well, I'm gay," Midoriko confessed.

"It does explain a lot," Kaede said as if she was astonished. She did not seem angry at all, the eldest noted. She did seem really surprised, though.

"You're not upset with me, are you?" Midoriko inquired, speaking to both of her sisters.

Kaede scoffed. "Like she has any right to be upset," she remarked while motioning to Kikyo. "She's dating a demon, after all," she added.

"But…he's still a he," Midoriko pointed out.

"What I think our little sister is trying to say in the most comedic way possible is that we don't mind that you're gay, sister. It's who you are. It doesn't change you or us in any way, except maybe for the fact that we won't try to get you to date guys anymore," Kikyo replied.

"Are you sure about this?" Midoriko asked in disbelief. She had been so sure that they would hate her for all eternity if they ever found out about her sexual preferences and yet they were acting as if it was nothing at all. It was almost unnerving because of its ease, but she would rather that than a negative reaction. It let her know just how close she and her sisters were.

"It's no big deal. I mean, if you talk to demons, they don't even know what gay is," Kaede answered. At school, aside for her regular clique of friends, she did know a lot of demons and knowing them did make her comfortable with a lot of things that other humans might view as strange or wrong.

"I'm not talking about demons; I'm talking about you two. I don't want to lose you two," the eldest stated.

"Don't worry. Something like this isn't going to send us away," Kikyo said in an assuring tone. She even smiled a bit to show that everything was fine.

"Even though you could get me back for all of the horrible reactions I have had to your relationships in the past?" Midoriko inquired. She wanted to get that out in the air because she desired assurance that it was not going to come back and bite her in the ass later on.

"I'm not spiteful, sister," Kikyo pointed out in an almost insulted tone. As if she would try to get back at her own sister while she was feeling so much agony. It would never even cross her mind to do such a thing.

"Wait, wait, wait, does this mean that Abi was your girlfriend?" Kaede asked curiously because that just hit her.

Midoriko blushed. She had actually never thought of Abi in such a way. Yes, they were lovers and they were dating, but she never thought of Abi as a girlfriend. Her expression did seem to answer the question for the youngest though.

"That explains so much," Kaede commented, once again as if she was amazed. The most astounding thing to her was that she failed to notice. How could she have missed all of the signs? All the time together, the low phone conversations, the red mark that she had once seen. "Oh, my god! She gave you that hickey!" Kaede shouted in disbelief while pointing at Midoriko.

"Hickey?" Kikyo echoed and she looked at Midoriko with wide eyes.

"I didn't have a hickey!" Midoriko denied it heatedly, holding her hands in a defensive position as if that would make help them believe her.

"She had a hickey," Kaede said to Kikyo.

"You and Abi were more than girlfriends, I take it," Kikyo commented, speaking to the eldest.

"I don't ask you want you do with that dog, so could you find it in your heart to return the favor?" Midoriko requested.

Kikyo sighed. "Fine. I'm not asking."

"So, sis, how long have you known you were gay?" Kaede inquired and her older sisters noticed the ease with which she spoke on it.

It would seem that the teenager was totally all right with the idea. Midoriko might as well have told them what she had for breakfast that morning with the way that Kaede was taking it. Kaede was really open-minded, especially since she did have a lot of demon friends and like she said, they did not even know what "gay" was.

"Well, I've known since about junior year in high school, but I suspected since about seventh grade. I just tried to ignore it for a long time and the couple of times I tried to…well, get to know others like myself, but I'm just not very comfortable in trying that," Midoriko explained in a bit of an awkward tone. The subject matter just seemed a bit weird to her.

Kaede and Kikyo nodded. That did explain why Midoriko always swore that she was not good with people when they tried to push her to be more social. She had tried to be social a few times to get dates that might interest her, but she just was not in her element. She had given up early on with it because she was uncomfortable with it.

"Sorry we kept bugging you about going out then," Kaede apologized for herself and for Kikyo, who nodded to back it up.

"I'm sorry for keeping this a secret for you two for so long. I just didn't know how you would react to this, especially with the way that I tend to react to things," Midoriko apologized too.

"It's all right, sister," Kikyo said and she leaned over to hug Midoriko. Kaede join in the embrace.

"We're here for you no matter what, just like you are for us," Kaede added in.

"But, I'm always so hard on you," Midoriko pointed out.

"That's just the way you are, sis. You demand perfection and you keep us on our toes. If you weren't hard on us, Kikyo wouldn't be a doctor and I would cut school a lot more," Kaede said.

"What do you mean 'a lot more'?" the two older sisters inquired.

Kaede laughed nervously. "Did I say 'a lot more'? I didn't mean it like that. It was just a joke," she tried to assure them. She hoped that they believed her.

"It doesn't sound like a joke," Kikyo commented.

"Come on, you two, you don't really think I would cut class, right?" Kaede asked, or so she hoped that they believed that she did not cut class.

Midoriko and Kikyo stared at Kaede, who grinned nervously. The two older sisters than looked at each other and frowned; Kaede knew the expressions were meant for her. She decided that she needed to get out of the room quickly for she said anything else incriminating.

"Well, this was great sharing this moment with you two and I hope everything works out for you, Midoriko. I need to be going and see what Rin is cooking up," Kaede said in a rapid tone while pushing herself off of the bed and practically running out of the room.

"Was she joking?" Kikyo asked.

"We can find out when her report card comes," Midoriko answered.

"Good point," the doctor concurred. "Are you all right?" she asked to be certain.

"For the moment. I just want to hear her voice. Are you honestly all right with me being…well…gay?" Midoriko asked.

"Miko, were you gay yesterday?" Kikyo asked.

"Well, yes…"

"Were you gay last month?"

"Yes."

"And what about last year?"

"I was."

"And I was totally fine with you then, so why wouldn't I be fine with you now?"

"You didn't know before," Midoriko pointed out.

"Knowing it doesn't change you since it's hardly my business who you're attracted to, especially when I've seen you get along with Abi."

"How can you be so nonchalant and accepting of this? I mean, I haven't been the same with you," Midoriko stated.

"I know, but I also know that you want what's best for me. I want what's best for you too and we just go about it differently. I believe that you need someone in your life other than me and Kaede. I have Sessho, Kaede has her interesting friends, and you should have whoever it is that makes you happy and if that's Abi, then so be it. Everyone needs that," Kikyo explained.

"Thank you so much for being so understanding," Midoriko replied.

Kikyo only smiled. She never was in a mood to alienate herself from her sisters, even if she could use it to get back at the times when Midoriko hurt her. She would never purposely injure her sisters, especially at an emotionally fragile moment like Midoriko was having. She just could not do it because she never wanted to hurt the closest family members that she had.

"I'm so sorry for everything," Midoriko said again.

"It's all right. Everything worked out and besides, you were right that first time," Kikyo pointed out.

Midoriko did not respond. It was not the time for "I told you so" or anything like that. She was just so thankful for such understanding sisters. She had been so afraid to tell them. It seemed to her like the world would open up and it would swallow her whole, but nothing like that happened and she was so grateful. Her sisters were just about the best people in the world in her opinion.

So, she felt better now, but there was still the question of why Abi was not taking her calls eating at the back of her mind. She thought that they had had something and that she meant something to Abi, but it seemed like that was not the case. She was going to try to wait, but in the pit of her stomach, she could feel terrible, agonizing dread.

--------------

"Sessho," Kikyo said. She was curled up on the sofa with him in their living room. They were watching a movie.

"Hmm?" he replied.

"You knew about my sister and Abi," she said. It was not a question, but a statement and he did not miss that.

Sesshomaru glanced down at the petite woman in his arms and wondered how he should respond. Was he in trouble for knowing? Was she angry that he had not told or was she curious that he not said anything about it? He was not sure, but she did not seem totally upset, which he thought was a good thing.

"I did," he confirmed.

"And you didn't try to use it against her?" Kikyo asked almost as if she was totally stunned by that.

"You know me better than that, beloved," he replied.

Kikyo nodded. It would be beneath him to just rat her sister out, she figured. He would never think to do something so underhanded to her sister. She smiled; she was proud of him. He looked rather curious at her.

"Why are you smiling?" he asked.

"Because I'm proud of you," she answered honestly.

"Proud of me?"

"You kept a secret for my sister, knowing that it was something that she needed to tell."

"Okay," he commented, not sure what else to say. He did not really want to talk about it since it was not any of his business anyway.

"But, now I need to ask you something," she said.

"What?"

"Do you think that Abi only used my sister? Midoriko has been trying to call Abi and Abi isn't answering. Midoriko is very distressed over things and I tried to assure her that things aren't as bad as they seem. Have I given her false hope?" Kikyo inquired.

Sesshomaru was quiet for a few seconds. He was not very surprised that Abi was not taking Midoriko's calls. He suspected that whatever the two women had would vanish like mist in a breeze once Abi flew back home. He was not sure if it was because Abi would let her hatred of humans once again reign over her thoughts and have her judge Midoriko differently now that she was not seeing the human every day again. He did not want to say that Abi might not have actually cared about Midoriko because he was not going to speak for the bird demon, but he did not know what to make of things.

"I can't speak for Abi. There are all sorts of explanations for why she might not be taking your sister's calls. Maybe Abi is frightened for having feelings for a human and not know how to deal with it. Maybe she's now ashamed for being with a human. Maybe her mother found out and has barred her from speaking to Midoriko. There are plenty of explanations," he replied.

"Would her mother do such a thing?" Kikyo asked, her borrow was furrowed just a bit with worry. She was not sure what might become of things if Abi was being manipulated by her mother.

"Perhaps, if she is aware and Abi will listen to her mother no matter what. Give her sometime. Perhaps she will be like me and recognize her mistake," he said.

Kikyo smiled and nodded. He knew that he had said the right thing, which was why he had added that final part to his statement; she seemed to be amusement on the rare occasions that he had admitted his imperfections and there was no baggage with it. He thought that Abi was hardheaded creature, but there was a chance that she would recognize her mistake, if Midoriko did mean anything to her.

"So, was your busybody sister worried for nothing?" he asked.

"As far as her telling us? Yes, I suppose she was worried for nothing," she answered.

"I knew she was," he commented.

Kikyo smiled and nodded again. The conversation ended there and they turned their attention back to the movie. Kikyo did worry about her sister and she hoped that things would turn out well for Midoriko. She was going to try to be there for her sister until Abi did recognize her mistake if that was the case.

--------------

Next time: Kikyo gets Midoriko a date to try to help her out of her funk.


	17. Passing grade

I don't own these characters.

17: Passing grade

"So, does dead even begin to cover what you're going to be when your sister sees your report card?" Kohaku asked Kaede as they along with Rin and Shippo marched toward their usual stomping ground. They all had their skates hanging over their shoulders, opting to walk to lament their grades.

"Hmm…dead might possibly only scratch the surface," Kaede answered while looking down at her report card in sheer disbelief. Her sisters were probably going to cut her limbs off before beheading her.

"I know what you mean. Oh, why did we cut all those classes!" Rin wailed. She would be lucky if she got off punishment by the time that she was in college with the grades that she was bringing in. She could not even imagine showing her report card to her parents without a lot barking going on.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time. A good idea usually had by Kohaku," Kaede said in an accusing tone.

"I didn't hear you two complaining when we had the entire skate park to ourselves," he pointed out. He wondered if eating his report card would be a good way to get out of trouble. Maybe he could "accidentally" lose it. He had to think of something before he got home or his sister was going to crack his skull open.

"In fact, you guys were cheering," Shippo added in. He was in the same shape as his friends. Death was going to be welcoming him home when his parents saw his report card.

"Well, we're not cheering now," Kaede retorted.

"Not with these grades," Rin moped while shoving her report card into her back pocket. She did not even want to have to look at it anymore.

"I know what you mean," Kohaku actually agreed. His sister was going to kill him…again. He always swore that his sister was going to kill him during the first semester for the school term. She always did get on him just enough for him to know that by the last marking period he had better have his grades up or he would be as good as dead. Things typically worked out for him in the end, but he hated going through the process.

"So…does anyone have a plan?" Shippo inquired. His parents were not going to be too pleased when they saw his report card either and would probably blame his grades on those "delinquents" that he hung out with. His parents did not think too much of his friends because they were all humans.

"I vote we not show anybody," Rin offered. She figured the second she, Kaede, or Kohaku shared a report card with someone, everyone was going to know because they were all connected through their siblings.

"I second that," Kaede voted, going so far as to raise her hand.

"That's all well and good, but what are we going to do when parent-teacher night comes up?" Kohaku inquired. Their school sent out notices for things like that and as soon as one sibling knew, they were all going to know. They were the very definition of doomed.

"We could all stay on the look out for the mail," Shippo replied.

"Not in my house. Inuyasha always grabs it after someone brings it in. He wants to make sure nothing comes for him that might piss off Dad," Rin said.

"And Inuyasha is the kind of guy that would rat you out," Shippo muttered.

"Well, if it would take focus off of something that he did, yeah. Or he might just want to know why I didn't say anything about it and then he's going to want to see my report card and then he's going to get all loud and tell Dad and I'm going to be grounded for the rest of my life!" Rin shouted in a panic.

"Better than being dead," Kaede remarked. Oh, her sisters were definitely going to slay her upon witnessing her report card. She had never had such poor grades in all her life.

"Yeah, you guys be sure to say something nice at our funerals, please," Kohaku requested with a desperate sigh.

"At least you only have one sister to worry about," Kaede said.

"Well, Midoriko's the one you really have to worry about. Kikyo's not so forceful, after all," Kohaku replied. He actually could not imagine Kikyo being stern with Kaede; it was just not a side of Kikyo that they typically saw. They got to see the sweet, gentle, kind side of her, which was mostly what she was, but Kaede knew that Kikyo could be just as firm as Midoriko when it came to things like her education.

"Midoriko is more likely to raise her voice, but Kikyo is going to fill all that yelling with stern looks. I'm so done," Kaede sighed.

Kaede was actually glad that she had gotten some rather poor grades; they were poor by her sisters' high standards. She had not failed anything, but a couple of classes, she had just barely passed. With those grades, she might possibly be able to get Midoriko to act more like herself. Midoriko was still acting strangely, not in total despair anymore, but it was clear that she was depressed.

Kaede guessed that Midoriko was still unable to get into contact with Abi. Midoriko did not speak on it or anything, but it was clear from the way that she was dragging around that things were not going her way. So, maybe seeing the horrible grades that Kaede had to offer would snap her back to normal, she considered. Now, she was going to have figure out how to balance out the desire and horror that came with Midoriko seeing her report card.

--------------

"I'm home!" Kaede announced as she entered the apartment.

She did not get an answer, which she thought was odd. She kicked off her shoes and then searched the apartment to see if she was alone. It would be cool if she was, she thought. Perhaps her big sister found the energy to go out and to try being social again. And then she found Midoriko in the kitchen, multitasking as she had a bad habit of doing now. She was on the phone, cooking, and apparently trying to put something into her digital planner.

"I'm home," Kaede said again.

Midoriko turned to acknowledge her little sister, waving slightly with her full hand, which had a spoon. Kaede made a panicked face and pointed to the pot that Midoriko had been focusing on. Midoriko looked back at the food and shouted as she saw the pot was boiling over. Kaede shook her head while her big sister turned down the heat on the stove.

Kaede did not think that her big sister should be allowed to multitask while depressed because she could barely focus on one task. She had already burned two meals that week alone; Kaede had lost count how many meals had perished in the last month. She was starting to think that Midoriko had lost her mind, especially since she had been standing there for five minutes and the eldest had not thought to ask her about her report card. Now what was she supposed to do if Midoriko did not ask? It was not like she could just present such a horrible card to her eldest sister as if it was like every other report card she got.

The teen went to her room and tried to figure out how she could trick Midoriko into seeing her report card. Well, she supposed that she could leave the card lying around somewhere. The grades were so awful, in the eyes of her perfectionist sister anyway, that Midoriko probably would not even consider that it was a setup. She would probably just go berserk when she saw the marks and then she would be back to normal.

"Brilliant!" Kaede decided, even though she was going to be so dead when Midoriko finally saw the card. Well, sacrifices sometimes had to be made for loved ones, she told herself.

Kaede went back out into the apartment and tried to think of a good place to drop her report card. Well, she supposed that she should place it on the table because Midoriko was probably going to set the table, as she had been doing for the past month. So, she went and placed the terrible report card on the table and then went to the living room to wait for the results. It did not take too long.

"Kaede!" The scream frightened the crap out of the youngest and her face showed her terror, also the fact that she had nearly touched the ceiling from jumping so high at the sound of her name being shrieked. "What in the hell is this?" Midoriko hollered at the top of her lungs.

"It's not what you think!" Kaede replied. What the hell kind of response was that, her mind inquired, but Kaede did not have time to answer.

"How is it not what I think? What are these?" Midoriko demanded to know as she stomped out into the living room and pointed at the report card.

"Um…grades," the youngest answered as if she did not know what they were herself, like she was guessing.

"Whose grades?" the eldest inquired in a furious tone.

"Um…mine," Kaede admitted in a small, almost shy voice.

"Yours? What kind of grades are these for you? How dare you bring home grades like this?" Midoriko demanded to know.

"Well…what happened was…" Kaede stammered. Okay, well, Midoriko was behaving more like herself, but the teen had forgotten that she should have a proper excuse worked out for things once Midoriko got on a roll.

"Too much skating is what happened," Midoriko pointed out in a forceful tone.

"No! It wasn't the skating, but…um…" Kaede could not think of anything, so she decided to change the subject slightly. "Come on, Miko. We all know the first marking period doesn't count," she reminded the eldest with a shameless grin on her face.

"Says who?" Midoriko inquired.

"People?" Kaede replied weakly. It would seem that there was no way out of her current predicament.

"People who don't have any hope for their future," Midoriko stated, her face twisted in anger and disappointment. She was almost insulted that her little sister would dare bring such grades into their home and then act like everything was fine and dandy.

Kaede opened her mouth to retort, but was coming up empty yet again. "But, there are two more marking periods," she countered. "I can bring my grades up."

"No, you _will_ bring your grades up," the older sister ordered.

"Right!" the teen practically squeaked in compliance.

"When is open school night?" Midoriko inquired.

Kaede sighed. "Thursday," she answered.

Midoriko snorted, rather unlike herself. "I have a meeting that night," she said with a frown. Kaede cheered internally until she saw the look in Midoriko's eyes that informed her that the eldest had an idea. "I'll tell Kikyo to go," she figured.

Kaede's expression dropped. Kikyo was going to her open school night? Well, better Kikyo than Midoriko, but she still was screwed. Kikyo was going to be talking to her teachers and they were not going to have the best things to say about her. Well, at least Midoriko seemed somewhat normal, she noted. Unfortunately, the feeling did not last.

----(New day)

"You know, Kikyo, if my teachers tell you anything bad, you won't tell Midoriko, right?" Kaede asked as the sisters entered the hallway of her school. With them were Sesshomaru and Rin, who were lagging behind slightly because Rin was trying her best to explain why her grades were the way that they were. He had volunteered to go to open-school night since Kikyo had to go anyway and he could drive them all there.

"Why wouldn't I tell Midoriko?" Kikyo countered.

"Um…because this would depress her even more than she is now?" Kaede offered with a hopeful half smile. She had to try that one. She needed something to save her soul now.

"Nice try, little sister," Kikyo replied.

Kaede pouted since Kikyo was not helping her cause much. Kikyo was not sure what to expect from Kaede's teachers, but Kaede pleas that Midoriko not find out were not making her feel confident about what she was going to hear. She hoped that things were not going to be as horrible as Kaede was making them seem.

"Beloved, I'm going to go see Rin's math teacher first," Sesshomaru informed Kikyo while Rin practically passed out in the background.

"Ma…ma…math teacher?" Rin muttered. Her expression was one of pure terror. Not only had she barely passed math, but it was one class that she kind of misbehaved in since she had the class with some friends of hers and it was also the subject that currently confused her the most.

"I'll burn incense in your memory," Kaede said to her friend while clasping her hands together as if in prayer.

"How are you going to do that if you're dead too?" Rin inquired quite seriously. She also did not appreciate her friend making fun of her at such a trying time.

"Touché," Kaede replied, now feeling just like Rin.

"All right, sweetheart. I'm going to go see Kaede's social studies teacher," Kikyo informed her lover. The pairs split, planning to meet back up when having to see the teachers that the girls shared.

--------------

"Kagura?" Kikyo said as the wind demon approached the classroom that she was waiting outside of. Kikyo was now on her own as Kaede had run into a couple of friends of hers and she would rather be with them than to suffer the stares that Kikyo was giving her. Kikyo could not help the looks considering the reports that she had gotten from the first two teachers that she saw.

"Kikyo? I was wondering if I was going to see you," Kagura commented as she stood next to Kikyo, cutting a line that was outside of the room for parents waiting to see the teacher inside.

"I'm willing to bet that you're getting similar news to what I've been getting," Kikyo said.

"Of course considering the fact my sister hangs around yours and that mutt boyfriend of yours' little sister," the wind demon remarked. She and Kikyo were acquainted from having similar tastes in art and Kagura was also into skating, saying it was close to flying and almost just as good soaring. So, Kikyo sometimes saw Kagura when she went to see her little sister skate.

"Oh, yes, just blame my little sister, as if yours is a saint."

"My little sister wouldn't do anything if yours wasn't egging her on. Who's in there right now anyway?" Kagura inquired curiously, pointing to the classroom.

"Sango," Kikyo answered.

"Oh, that's great. She'll give us an idea as to what we should expect," Kagura commented and she was serious about that, knowing that Sango's younger brother hung out with their sisters all the time. Kikyo nodded and then she got hit with an idea.

"Kagura, you once asked me out, correct?" Kikyo asked.

"I think I did when I first met you and you were wearing those high heels and that suit. It was a case of momentary insanity," Kagura replied coolly, wondering why the doctor was bringing such a thing up. As a demon, she asked out just about anything on two legs that attracted her and Kikyo in high heels was an impressive sight. She could almost envy that dog boyfriend that Kikyo had if he got to see her in high heels often enough.

"I'm sure it was. What if I told you that I had a sister who was just like me who wore similar suits and high heels all the time?" Kikyo inquired.

"I have seen said sister. She actually frightens me more than you do," Kagura remarked. Those two sisters were just creepy…in a very eye-catching way. She considered it almost like a trap for demons. The pair of them were so striking, luring demons in and then next thing a demon would know that they would be a pile of ashes thanks to the spiritual power of the pair.

"Frightens you so much that you wouldn't go out with her for an evening?" the human asked quite curiously.

Kagura was curious if Kikyo was serious, but then again, she reminded herself that Kikyo was always serious. She knew that Kikyo was not interested in her and she recalled that the older sister was pretty much Kikyo plus three years. She did not see why Kikyo would be trying to push her to make a fool out of herself in front of the elder sister when she had already done that with Kikyo not too long ago.

"Kagura, my sister is…well…more likely to agree with dating you," Kikyo said in a low tone. She did not want to put her sister's business totally out in the street.

Kagura craned an eyebrow. "Are you telling me…?"

"Listen, my sister requires company and you might do her well. If you would agree, I can set it up. She would show you a most excellent time and it is a free meal," Kikyo pointed out.

"Free food, eh?" Kagura said. Kikyo was talking her language. "You're going to have to watch Kanna for me, though," the demon pointed out. She did not want to leave her sister alone at home anymore than Midoriko and Kikyo liked leaving Kaede home alone at night.

"I figured as much. She can stay with me, as I know Kaede will be doing the same if Midoriko actually goes out. Thank you for this, though," Kikyo replied.

"No problem. Free food," Kagura said with shrug. Kikyo nodded and then their moment was broken.

"He did what?!" Sango screamed inside of the room. Kikyo and Kagura braced themselves against the wall because of the sound her voice.

"You get the feeling we're not going to like it when we go in there?" Kagura asked Kikyo.

"Oh, why did Kohaku have to wait for them to get into high school to take chemistry?" Kikyo pled to the ceiling. Open school night was not going well. Kaede and her friends were out of their ever-loving minds it seemed, especially when they were in school with other friends.

--------------

"Our sisters are not going to be getting away with this anymore," Sesshomaru said to Kikyo after parent-teacher night. They were at home and the girls were with them, but confined to their bedroom.

"When you say 'this,' do you mean the slime bomb in the chem. lab, the possible causes to the food fights in the cafeteria, the rail grinding in the school hallways, or the general cutting and misbehavior?" Kikyo inquired. She was incredulous to some of the things that she heard from the teachers, even though it was a feeling all around that Kaede was a sweet and bright girl that just got a little too excited much of the time.

"All of the above sound about right. They're not going to be going skating as often, I know that much," he decided. He was certain that the skating was distracting the girls from studying, which was one of the reasons that Rin was not doing as well as she could in math. But, it would also act as a punishment to get them to get their act together with the hope that they would be allowed to skate again.

"Agreed. Midoriko is going to hate to hear about this," Kikyo sighed.

Sesshomaru could guess that Midoriko was going to feel the same way that they did on the matter and he was right. Kikyo called the eldest that night and Midoriko could not believe the things that Kikyo had to report, even after they were done talking about Kaede. Kikyo also had to inform her big sister that she got the lawyer a date, which the eldest was skeptical about.

"Kikyo, I don't think I'm ready for this," Midoriko said in a bit of a nervous tone.

"It's all right. It's only Kagura," Kikyo said. They were somewhat friendly with Kagura, so it was not like it was a real date, just something to get the lawyer back on her feet.

"Kagura? Not that wind demon with the foul mouth," Midoriko replied incredulously.

"Yes, because Abi's mouth was as elegant and fresh as a summer breeze," Kikyo remarked.

"No need to get sarcastic."

"Just go out with her, if only to have something to do for one night. Surely it could not hurt to just go out," Kikyo argued.

Midoriko sighed. "I suppose it could not hurt…" she conceded. It had been over a month since Abi left and it would seem that the bird demon was trying her best to forget that Midoriko existed, so she might as well try to move on.

"Kagura will be on her best behavior…for the most part," Kikyo promised. Well, she had told Kagura to be on her best behavior and the wind demon had agreed; sure, it was in a flippant manner, but that was how Kagura was.

Midoriko sighed again. "I'm so sure. I take it you'll take Kaede on the night for this…date," she said, cringing when the word "date" exited her mouth.

"Of course. I don't want you have to worry about her. I just want you to enjoy yourself."

"With Kagura?" the eldest asked incredulously. How could she enjoy with Kagura?

"Give her a chance. You know she's into the same art styles as you," Kikyo commented.

"We shall see. When would this happen?" Midoriko inquired, as if she did not plan to agree with it.

"I'll give you her number to pick a convenient time. Use the number, sister. If you don't call her, I will know," Kikyo stated.

"I will," Midoriko vowed.

The sisters disconnected their call and Kikyo sighed that time. She hoped that things went well for her sister. Sesshomaru looked over at her and she could guess what was on his mind.

"Yes, I set my sister up on a date with a demon woman. Is that so strange?" she inquired.

"Slightly, yes," he answered honestly. It never would have even crossed his mind that Kikyo would ever have to set her sister up for a date with a female demon; there were just too many wrong things in such a thought in his opinion.

"Well, pardon me my lord, if I want my sister to be happy," she teased him.

"Speaking of sisters, what's going to be done with those two?" he asked while nodding to the room that the pair were banished to for the night.

"I know you're already considering taking that they shouldn't skate nearly as much."

"They shouldn't."

"I suppose until they bring their grades back up, we should take away their skates," Kikyo said.

Sesshomaru nodded. He was going to have to tell his father and stepmother about the arrangements. Other than the mediocre grades that Rin had pulled in and the behavior that she displayed with she was with her friends, her teachers did not think that she was a rotten egg or anything. They just thought that she was hyperactive. He did not think that excused her behavior.

Kikyo sighed; she had two sisters to worry about at the moment. She hoped that things worked out between Midoriko and Kagura. Kagura was pretty open-minded, so she did not have anything against humans in general. Kagura's motto was pretty much "I'll wait til I know you and then decide you're an asshole," and yes, those were her exact words. Her motto kicked in about five minutes after she met Sesshomaru at the skate park when he and Kikyo were there to see their sisters compete. While Sesshomaru got labeled an "asshole," Kagura had decided that Kikyo and Midoriko were "creepy." But, it seemed that Kagura actually liked assholes and women that were "creepy" because she hit on both Sesshomaru and Kikyo that day. Needless to say, she had not gotten far, but Kikyo hoped that Kagura made some progress with Midoriko. If only to help the eldest sister heal the almost-visible wounds on her heart.

----(New day)

"Slumber party!" Rin and Kaede cheered as they ran into the apartment with their friend from school following calmly behind them, Kanna.

Kanna was a quiet girl and most people at their school wondered why she would hang out with two easily excitable girls like Rin and Kaede. She did have fun with them, though, mostly because they did not view her as disturbing. Even fellow demons thought that she was odd, but Kaede and Rin accepted her as she was and invited her to hang out with them all of the time. She had been overjoyed when her sister, Kagura, told her that she was going to be having a sleepover with them. She was also happy that they seemed to honestly want her around.

"You have them, beloved?" Sesshomaru inquired as he entered the apartment. He motioned to the teenage girls, who were all taking their shoes off.

"I'll handle them," Kikyo replied.

"Then I'm going to go do some painting," the dog demon informed her as he slipped out of his boots and went to his studio. He wanted to be out of the way for the "slumber party." He hoped that there was more "slumber" than "party" involved in the night, but he doubted that was how things were going to be from the excitement that their sisters were expressing on the ride over.

"So, what do we do first, sis?" Kaede inquired with a grin as the trio lined up in front of Kikyo.

"Well, I rented the movies you asked and I got the games you wanted. So, the living room is all yours. I'll order some takeout or pizza in a couple of hours for you. I want you all to do your homework before you do anything else, though," Kikyo informed them and her sister and Rin groaned.

"Do we have to?" Kaede and Rin asked at the same time, in the same whiny voice.

"Of course," Kikyo answered.

The girls frowned, but they did as they were ordered. They had fun after that, though. Kikyo ordered takeout and they watched movies, along with playing some games. Kikyo stayed out of the way for the most part because the girls were all right on their own, being teenagers and everything. She was glad to see that they were doing all right. She hoped the same could be said for Midoriko and Kagura.

----(Next day)

Kaede, Rin, and Kanna left out of the apartment, planning to go home after stopping by the skate park to put in some work. Rin and Kaede were now only allowed to skate on the weekend and they could not do so all day along as they used. They knew that they were being punished for such foul grades, so they did not argue it. They just decided that they were going to pull their grades up for the next marking period.

"Thank you for having me," Kanna said to Kikyo and Sesshomaru before being pulled out of the apartment by the couple's sisters. They did not even get a chance to bid her farewell with the way their sisters yanked her out of the place.

"I'm going to go see Midoriko while Kaede's out, okay?" Kikyo informed Sesshomaru.

"I gathered as much," he replied. He figured as soon as she could, Kikyo was going to go find out how her sister's date went. "Should I give you a ride?"

"If it pleases you to do so."

Sesshomaru would feel better driving her, so he did. He also told her to call when she was done and he would come pick her up if Midoriko was not going to drive her home. She made a comment about him worrying too much before kissing him goodbye and going up to Midoriko's apartment. She let herself in, although she knew that Midoriko was home.

"Good afternoon, sister," Kikyo greeted her older sibling when she spotted Midoriko sitting at the table, drinking tea.

"Kikyo. Would you like a cup of tea? I also have cake," Midoriko said.

"I'd like some cake," Kikyo replied.

"I had a feeling that you would."

Midoriko went and cut Kikyo a slice of chocolate cake. Kikyo sat down at the table and Midoriko placed the cake in front of her. They then sat quietly for a few moments before the eldest spoke up.

"Thank you for the try, sister, but I don't think I'm cut out for this formal dating thing," Midoriko commented, doing her best to sound normal and succeeding very well.

"The night with Kagura didn't go well?" Kikyo inquired.

"I tried, but I just…I just didn't feel right. I tried the best I could, but I'm just not good at this," Midoriko replied.

"Why? I don't understand. What went wrong?" the doctor asked. She was not sure what else to say. She honestly thought that Kagura would do her sister so well.

"I don't know exactly, but I know I wasn't good company. Kagura tried to speak to me about many things, but I wasn't responsive, even though I was trying to be myself and be comfortable. I even made a degrading remark about demons in her presence," Midoriko admitted with a groan. She shook her head in shame.

Kikyo made a face to that, but quickly got rid of it and returned to her neutral expression. "Perhaps you were just nervous," she offered, lacking anything better to say, but it was plausible.

"It's not nervousness. I don't know what it is, but it's troublesome. I didn't have it with Abi. Kikyo, how did you know that Sesshomaru was worth the chances that you were taking?" the eldest practically begged to know.

"Probably the same way that you knew Abi was worth it and that's why you stayed with her, even though you didn't want us to find out," Kikyo replied.

"I'm sorry that I kept it a secret."

"Don't be. I kept Sessho a secret, after all."

"Well, this was different," Midoriko argued.

"Not really. We both did something that we weren't particularly ashamed of, but weren't looking forward to what would happen when we were found out. It happens. So, I take it you won't be going out with Kagura a second time," Kikyo stated what she felt was obvious.

"No and she certainly wouldn't want to go out a second time anyway," Midoriko pointed out.

"It's all right, sister."

Midoriko sighed and stared down into her tea. "I really miss Abi…" she confessed in a whisper.

Kikyo nodded; as if she understood, Midoriko noted. Kikyo could see the longing in her sister's eyes. It was as if her sister loved Abi, she thought. And if that was the case, Abi at least owed Midoriko and explanation for her behavior and Kikyo was going to get her sister that at the very least. She just did not know how, yet anyway.

--------------

Next time: Kikyo decides to have a little talk with Abi.


	18. Metamorphosis

I don't own these characters.

A/N: Sorry for the delay.

18: Metamorphosis

"Sessho, do you have Abi's phone number?" Kikyo inquired out of the blue as far as her lover was concerned. They were milling about the kitchen, just looking for snacks before they were going to sit down on the couch and send a quiet night together watching some movies. It was a very pleasant way to spend the evening in their opinions and just enjoy the fact that they were alone for the time being.

"I do. Why?" he asked curiously.

"I've considered that she might answer a call from you. I need answers for my sister. Midoriko is hurt and I need to help her. She's been there for me when I needed her, she supported me when I needed her, she even put me through medical school…with the help of our aunt anyway," she explained.

"What about how she abandoned you?" he asked. It seemed like his beloved always forgot about that part when thinking about her precious older sister. It seemed she could not recall how Midoriko had forsaken her and left her to the wolves rather than standing by her like she seemed to be expected to do.

"I forgive her for that. She's also a fan of tough love and that's why she acted in such a way. But, I need to help her. I think that she's in love with Abi," the doctor informe$ him.

Sesshomaru sighed and shook his head. "Are all of you sisters out of your minds?" he inquired quite seriously.

"It would seem so," she remarked with a bit of a smile. 

"I'll call her for you in a moment or so. Tell me, am I searching in vain for those little peanut clusters that you buy?" he asked. He had been through every cabinet and he was not coming across what he desired. He smelled the peanuts vaguely still lining some of the cabinets and a few were full, so he moved things out of the way with the hope that what he wanted would be there.

"Oh, yes. Kaede and Rin cleaned those out days ago."

"They eat everything," he commented with a sigh. He had a very limited tolerance for junk food and the one thing that he desired at the moment was gone because Kaede and Rin had yet to meet a food that they did not like.

"Yes, they do," she concurred because their sisters did eat everything, especially if it was junk food.

Sesshomaru sighed and gave up on his hunt for snacks because the one thing that he wanted was gone. He went to the sofa to start the movie while Kikyo grabbed a box of cookies. She followed her lover into the living room and curled up next to him, sighing in deep comfort once she was against him. He wrapped an arm around her while the other arm grabbed his cell phone. He dialed up Abi.

"What do you want, dog-breathe?" Abi inquired when she answered her phone. She was shocked to be hearing from him and to cover the fact that she was stunned, she decided to be hostile. She guessed why he might be calling, but she doubted that it was the real reason. What did he care, after all?

"You must be doing well for yourself," Sesshomaru replied as if the words had no affect on him.

"Better than you," she practically snarled into the phone. He could picture her expression in his mind; her looking snide and heated for no reason, which she was.

"I doubt that," he commented.

She snorted in anger, seeming to know what he was implying as to why he was doing better than she was. "What do you want?" she demanded to know.

"Hold on," Sesshomaru said and he passed the phone to his lover.

"Hello, Abi," Kikyo said.

"Kikyo?" Abi inquired just to make sure. Her ears were keen enough to know that it was Kikyo, but she wanted to be sure. Midoriko and Kikyo sounded alike as well as looking alike. It was unnerving.

"Yes."

"What do you want?" the princess asked with an attitude.

"Why aren't speaking to my sister?" the human inquired quite civilly, but there was something underneath it all that made it seem like she was demanding that information.

"I don't have to explain myself to you."

"You owe her an explanation," Kikyo replied.

"I don't owe her a damn thing."

"She misses you," Kikyo informed for the bird demon. It was an ambush tactic for her to get a feel of where Abi was really coming from. She wanted to see how the princess would react to the news.

Abi was quiet for a moment. "So the hell what?" she finally said, trying her best to sound in control of everything. She only came across as unnecessarily forceful. It seemed that the lady doth protest too much, Kikyo thought.

"She cries for you," Kikyo continued on because it seemed to her that the opening line had gotten to the bird demon more than she wanted to let on.

Abi was silent again, much longer than that first time. "So…so the hell what?" she repeated once her voice decided to return. She wished that it had not returned so shaken.

"She still has feelings for you." That statement was met by silence and Kikyo looked at the phone screen, seeing that Abi had hung up on her.

"What did that accomplish?" Sesshomaru inquired.

"You're not the only one with sharp ears. I don't think she's enjoying the separation and there's a non-malicious reason as to why she's ignoring Midoriko," Kikyo explained.

"And now what?" Sesshomaru asked curiously. He did not see what good that information did his beloved.

"I don't know yet. I'll let her think on those few words I told her and if she doesn't act, I'll try to call her back."

"And if she's not answering calls from me now that you've used my phone?"

"There are plenty of phones to ambush her from."

"That's harassment," he pointed out.

"And?" she replied with a smile.

He chuckled a bit and decided not to interfere with her business. If she wanted to try to get to the heart of why Abi was acting the way that she was, then he would let her. She wanted to help her sister, which he could not understand and she knew that. She felt like Sesshomaru would not be able to understand her actions no matter what because he was the eldest of his siblings. He was more likely to understand things that Midoriko did, not that she would ever say that to either of them, as they would take it as an insult.

Sesshomaru and Midoriko were the type that felt like they had to take care of everyone under their care and because of that, they needed to always have it together. They also should not require help from those that were in their care, like their younger siblings. Oh, they were so similar and that was probably why they just could not get along, Kikyo considered.

----(New day)

It had barely taken Abi a week to learn when not to answer her cell phone, Kikyo noted. The doctor had already wasted a phone call from her job to speak with Abi, who had merely hung up as soon as she found out who it was. Abi now knew that she was not supposed to answer any phone call that seemed to be from a street phone, any random phone that had a seemingly business name, and nothing with the word "medical" in it. She really just did not answer any calls that she did not recognize.

"I'm out of phones," Kikyo sighed to herself while she was sitting at her desk.

She had used almost every phone that she could think of and she could not get in touch with Abi anymore. She was not sure what to make of Abi's behavior. The bird demon seemed to be hiding something with the way that she would not even talk to Kikyo anymore. She just had to get to what it was and she had to figure out how to do that.

She was taken from her thoughts for a moment as she sensed Suikotsu coming close. She just waited for him to go by, as he now did all the time. He no longer stopped to speak with her, which was fine by her. She just had to get used to it. She was still nervous that he was going to come into her office and perhaps talk to her and cause trouble.

She was not sure what it was that changed Suikotsu's behavior, but she really did not care since things had changed for the better in her opinion. It was also nice that his friends did not just hang around outside the medical center anymore. She considered that they might have grown some brains and realized how tacky it was for them to just loiter around outside a clinic.

"Beloved, are you ready to go?" Sesshomaru inquired as he stepped into the office. He was coming to pick her up and she had been waiting for him since her last appointment went by faster than expected.

"I am," Kikyo answered as she stood up from her seat.

"You look a bit upset," he noted as she came up to him to leave. He wrapped his arm around her in a possessive manner. He did it unconsciously, but it was for people at her job to see that she was his woman.

"Abi seems to know when I'm calling her and it's a bit irksome. She's making it hard to get the answers that I would like from her," Kikyo honestly answered, sounding close to frustrated with the way that things were currently going with the troublesome bird demon.

"Hmm…You're not going to let this go, are you?" he asked, even though he knew the answer to it.

"Not until I get what I want."

He nodded a bit, expecting her to say something of that nature. "Then you'll have to clear a few days on your schedule," he stated.

"Clear my schedule?" she echoed a slightly bemused tone.

"Yes, clear your schedule."

"You're not suggesting what I think you're suggesting," she commented. He could not mean that she thought he meant, right? It was too spontaneous.

"I'm sure I am. You want your answers then you have to be in total control over the entire situation. There's no way for you to be in total control over the situation if you keep going over the phone," he pointed out.

"Well, I suppose you make a point," she yielded because he was right. She could only do so much over the phone and much of what happened was out of her hands. She needed things to where she could dictate what happened for the most part.

"Besides, we haven't visited the city she calls home yet. It's a wonderful city," he said.

"And you have other plans for things that we should do?" she inquired, as if she did not know.

"Well, I could think of a few things," he replied with a bit of a smirk. She shook her head and smiled a bit. She did agree with his plan, though.

----(New day)

Kikyo could not stay awake when she was flying it would seem. Sesshomaru had known that for a while now considering the fact that they took trips every couple of months, be it for a weekend or longer. He did not mind the fact that she always fell asleep because she always fell asleep against him. He then spent the flight caressing her, no matter how long. If she was asleep, he would stroke her hair, face, arm, or just about any body part that he could reach and keep her relaxed.

He occupied most of his time that flight caressing her cheek. She was out like a light, pressed against him. She had her arms around him, one around his waist and the other around shoulder, so she was embracing him in her sleep. He had an arm around her too since she was hugging him in her sleep; he wanted to make sure that she was totally secure. Every now and then, she was cuddle up to him more in her sleep and he noticed that the man sitting across from them seemed particularly interested in them.

Sesshomaru frowned; he hated when people stared at him while he was with his woman. He made a gesture with his free hand, holding it up and cracking his knuckles, showing off his talons while he was at it. The man gulped and faced front while Sesshomaru turned his attention back to his resting angel.

She was such a kindhearted creature, he silently said to himself. She wanted so desperately to help her sister, who had been so hard on her when it came to her love life, yet she was attempting to mend her sister's relationship. Not just any relationship either, but a homosexual affair between her sister and a demon princess. He was not even sure that she totally approved of the relationship, although she was probably trying, but she was looking to help. She was wonderful, he reminded himself. She was an angel.

Sesshomaru made a mental note to do something special for Kikyo, if only to let her know just how special she was. He supposed that he could start that as soon as they landed. Well, first, they might have to get her task out of the way, although he was not sure what order she wanted to do things in. She might want to save her task until the end just in case things did not go the way that she desired and she would not have to be upset for the whole trip.

Kikyo was awake by the time the plane landed. She followed Sesshomaru as he exited the plane and went to grab their luggage. There was a car waiting for them; Sesshomaru always arranged for a car. She cuddled up next to him in the car as she always did and the actions earned them a look from the driver, as they typically did.

"I don't think the traffic is back here," Sesshomaru said to the driver, which caused the man to focus on the road ahead of them. The dog demon focused on the woman sharing her body heat with him. "So, what would you like to do?" he asked her.

"Let's do what you want to do for today. Tomorrow we can handle what I have," she answered.

Sesshomaru smiled, liking that idea. He thought it was a good plan because she might actually be a bit depressed tomorrow if things did not go the way that she desired. So, he was going to try to shoot the works for one night while she was in a good mood. He was glad that she had gotten so much sleep on the plane.

They checked into their hotel and took a shower before going out for the day; it was the afternoon. Sesshomaru took Kikyo to a gallery that he knew she would adore and he was very right about that. He seemed to impulsively buy her a decided favorite piece. She thought it was on impulse, as close as Sesshomaru could come to being impulsively anyway. He would have argued differently, but she did not bring it up, so he did not say anything.

After the gallery, he took her a show and they had dinner. She thought that the night out would be over with dinner, but then he surprised her, taking her dancing. When he brought the idea up, he smiled ever so slightly when he noticed the look of shock on her face. She was rather sexy when she was stunned, he thought.

They gained quite a few looks while they were out, but they were used to that. No one ever said anything to them. It would seem that people just knew not to bother the couple with nonsense on what they thought was wrong with the couple. It was a very wise decision for people to keep their opinions to themselves.

The night was great as far as Kikyo was concerned and Sesshomaru was glad that it went that way because he really did not think that tomorrow was going to go in her favor. She did not seem to be thinking about it, he noted. He was willing to bet that she was not thinking about it because she thought that everything was going to go her way, as she always seemed to think. It was something that made them similar; the fact that they always expected things to go how they wished them to go.

----(Next day)

Abi was walking to her office with a large stack of papers in her hands. She was dressed in a black suit with a pink shirt and she was busy reading the top paper, trying to keep up with all of her annoying duties. She sighed and cursed under her breath while reading on and she kicked her office door open because her hands were full. Well, she thought that she was kicking her door open, but it did not budge.

"Oh, come on. What the hell? I know I left this damn thing open," Abi grumbled and then the door opened. She stepped in.

"You must be distracted, Abi," Sesshomaru commented from the side as he shut the door behind her.

Abi gasped in shock. "What the hell are you doing here, Muttly?" she demanded to know, shooting him a look of a pure hatred. She did not like that he was able to surprise her and she doubted that he was there for a social call. She did not want to bother with him or why he was loitering in her office.

"I'm just being an escort," he replied and then he motioned to the front of the office.

Abi followed his hand and caught sight of Kikyo, who was standing by the princess' desk. The bird demon frowned, not enjoying the surprise visit it would seem. She was not too sure which one of them she should address to express her outrage, so she opted to press both of them until she could settle on one prime target.

"How the hell did you two get passed security?" Abi inquired angrily. She was going to see to it that every security person in the building was fired for such a breach.

"Come now, Abi, surely you can think of a better opening question that that," Sesshomaru remarked.

"Well, humans aren't allowed in here," the bird demon stated.

"We're heard that speech already. I'm not leaving until this is resolved," Kikyo informed the noblewoman with conviction deep in her voice.

"It's already resolved, so get the hell out," Abi commanded with a look a fury. She really did not need them being there, she mentally growled. She had enough problems in her life without them adding to the long list.

"What was the resolution? You not taking her calls doesn't resolve anything. It just tells us that you ran away from her. Why?" Kikyo inquired calmly.

"I didn't run away," Abi nearly shouted because she was offended, but she caught herself. She was the princess of her whole clan, heir to the bird demons. She would never run from anyone for anything.

"Then what did you do?" the doctor asked, almost as if she was skeptical on any other explanation that might exist.

"Your sister was only a way to pass the time while I was overseas. Just like your lover would have been if he wasn't such a loyal mutt," Abi remarked, smirking with the hope that she had scored a hit on the annoying woman who just needed to let her be.

"Beloved, allow me," Sesshomaru said because Abi just officially pissed him off. He did not like that she had alluded to the little "incident" between him and her.

"Feel free," Kikyo replied.

Sesshomaru turned his attention to the bird demon. Abi almost gulped with the way he cut his eyes to her, almost as if he was trying to slice her in half with his gaze. She maintained her composure outwardly, but she knew that he could smell that she was not in her usual mindset. She was now angry because he was probably picking up all sorts of things with that damn sensitive dog nose.

"Could you just get out?" Abi barked, hoping that her fury was coming out more than anything else. She sounded desperate and a little exhausted, though.

"Why should we get out? I saw you with her, Abi. I've seen the way Kikyo keeps on this. There's something to this and if you care just a little about Midoriko as she and Kikyo seem to believe, you should at least give them the reasons as to why you're acting like such a bitch," he commented in a rather biting tone, for him anyway. It was like he was trying to dice her up with his words.

"I don't owe them anything," Abi argued heatedly. Why could they not leave her alone? Leave everything be? It was not like they would be able to understand.

"No? You don't owe the woman that makes your heart beat just a little bit faster with the very mention of her name?" he inquired. Oh, he had heard her heart beat when Midoriko was brought up even before the split. He could tell how excited she would get about Midoriko. He just had not paid it any mind then, but now it was coming very handy.

"Shut up," she growled. She did not want to hear anything about that woman anymore.

"I know you still see her when you close your eyes, don't you? You still imagine her lips against yours. You still remember her body against yours when you lay down to sleep. I know you do," he said in a deliberate voice. It was like he was speaking from experience, but the princess did not pick up on that because she was too lost in her own mood.

"Shut up," she repeated with a deep snarl.

"I know you do because I've been there, Abi. You think about her and how you know she's hurting and it's all your fault. You think about how Kikyo told you she cries for you and how she still has feelings for you and I know you want to go change what's happening to her now," he continued on.

"I don't!" she objected with more volume than she meant to. It showed that he was getting to her and she did not want to give that away. She did not even want him to get to her, but the thought of her precious little human crying because of her hurt like hell.

Sesshomaru seemed to ignore her outburst and just marched on. "I know you do. She's hurting and it's your fault," he stated evenly.

"I don't care!"

"You know you do. Why do you deny it? It's only going to plague you. I know it. So, why do you deny it? Because you can't see her tears? Because you can't hear her sniffling?" he inquired and he would have continued on, but she interrupted him.

"Shut up!" Abi screamed, sounding angry and distraught. She would have attacked him if she just angry, but she was sorrow-stricken too. She wanted to break herself, but she could do that in front of them.

"You obviously still care about my sister. So, why won't you answer her calls?" Kikyo inquired.

"I…just…I can't," the bird demon answered.

"Why not?" Kikyo pressed, but she made sure to keep patience in her voice.

"Your mother," Sesshomaru guessed.

"If she found out, she'd…I don't even know what she might do. She might actually kill me for being with a human like that and for feeling what I felt. She found out that I was just hanging around Midoriko and ordered that I break all contact with her. Her voice alone told me that I better do as she said or she would break every bone in my body. I know she would too," Abi confessed in a small voice, sounding extremely sad as she spoke.

"Abi, at some point in time, you have to do what you want to do," Sesshomaru stated. If she did not, he thought that she would become more unglued than he believed her to currently be. She was going to drive herself to madness by forsaking her desires.

"Oh, easy for you to say. Your father freaking lives with a human and has a son by her, not to mention adopted a human girl. It's easy for you to just show up one day with a human on your arm," the princess argued in a heated tone. She would never be able to do such a thing. The bird demon clan had always hated humans and always would, her mother was no exception. It was not too long ago that her clan used to drink the blood of human; there was no way that she could have Midoriko under such hostile conditions.

"You don't know what happened," Sesshomaru replied in a calm voice, even though it was an affront to him that she would assume that his relationship with Kikyo was so easily accepted by his family.

"Oh, so you showing up with a freaking doctor on your arm was hard?" Abi scoffed in disbelief.

"My father threatened to cut me off completely. He was set to let Inuyasha inherit our clan and his business. I walked out of his house that day and went right back to Kikyo and she wasn't crying or pining or calling me all hours of the day. Did Midoriko mean so little to you that one word from your mother and you would abandon her?" he demanded to know.

"She means the world to me," Abi snarled, insulted that he would try to downplay her feelings for Midoriko. How dare he! He did not know what she felt in her heart for that wonderful, incredible human. He did not know what it meant to her when she held Midoriko or when Midoriko held her, so how dare he make assumptions on her feelings!

"Then, please, return to her," Kikyo implored the bird demon.

"I can't…" Abi sighed in defeat. She could not return to Midoriko because she valued the lawyer so much; not to mention, she valued her own life.

"She misses you so desperately. I tried to get her to go out with someone else and in the end, all she could do was tell me that she missed you," Kikyo said.

"Someone else?" Abi looked stunned and then outraged. Her precious Midoriko was going out with other women? A possessive streak in her raged deeply inside of her. How dare another woman go near her Midoriko!

"Of course," Sesshomaru commented, jumping back in. It was almost as if he could smell that possessive nature inside of her come to life. He did expect it though, since Abi was a spoiled brat that never liked to share and a demon to boot. "Do you think she's waiting around for a woman that won't even return her calls?" he inquired.

Abi frowned; it did make sense. Why would Midoriko wait around for her when she was not even taking Midoriko's calls? Still, she was thoroughly upset with the idea of someone else touching her precious human. She wanted to make a tight fist, but her hands were full with fucking garbage as far as she was concerned now.

"She does miss you. You didn't make her feel uncomfortable as she seems to feel around people when dating. She needs you and I can fairly confidently state that she just might love you," Kikyo informed the princess.

"Love me?" Abi looked totally shocked by that news. She stared at Kikyo, as if she was looking for some sign that it was a lie. But, damn it if those deep chocolate eyes did not state that she was telling the stone cold truth.

"She hasn't said so, but she has admitted to feeling deeply for you. Your absence makes her cry. I haven't seen this woman shed tears since our parents died years ago. She's weak without you. I can't stand to see her like this and I wish I could fix it, fix her, but only you could do that. If you care about her at all, you'll at least explain that you don't want to be with her because you're scared of your mother," Kikyo stated.

Abi did not respond. She glanced away, finding her carpeted floor quite intriguing at the moment. She felt it was obvious that she had caused a lot of agony for Midoriko. After all, Kikyo had come overseas to point it out and even Sesshomaru was trying to urge her to act on her feelings. It was almost overwhelming, but not quite as overwhelming as the thoughts of what her mother might do to her, or worse: what her mother might do to Midoriko.

"It's better this way. My mother might hurt Midoriko if I show any interest in her," Abi found herself arguing. It was the best thing that she had now since they knew how she felt.

"The emotional trauma that you're putting her through is infinitely worse than anything your mother might do," Kikyo pointed out. Besides, her elder sister could handle herself against demons, she mentally added.

"This is the best way," Abi insisted. She had to believe that or it just meant that she caused someone that meant the world to her agony on top of agony for no reason other than her own fear and she could not accept that.

"This the easy way and that's only on your end," the human commented.

"It's the best way," Abi stressed.

"We shall see," Kikyo said and she walked over to Sesshomaru, not bothering to even look at Abi as she passed the bird demon.

The couple did not say anything to Abi and they exited the office, along with the building. That went as well as they both expected. Sesshomaru doubted that he would have guessed that Abi's mother was the reason that she was acting the way that she was. He just thought that Abi had come to her bird-brained senses once she got back home and tried to convince herself that she did not care about Midoriko or that she did not want Midoriko in any way.

"How about we go to a museum?" Sesshomaru offered, just to get an idea as to where his lover's head was.

"Sounds wonderful," she answered. It would seem that her mood was not totally soured, even though it did not seem that she had gotten through Abi's thick-skull. She thought otherwise, though.

--------------

Abi sighed while staring down at the list of text messages on her cell phone. They were all from Midoriko. She had saved them from when Midoriko was still trying to get in contact with her. She rubbed her face; what would her mother say if she knew the truth? Hell, what was the truth? Did Midoriko really love her? Did she love Midoriko? So many questions and she really only wanted to know the answer to one.

--------------

Next time: Sesshomaru has a surprising question for Kikyo and she had a surprising answer.


	19. Fearless

I don't own these characters.

19: Fearless

The quick trip overseas for Sesshomaru and Kikyo was over. They were on a plane headed home and as usual Kikyo was sleeping against him. He was content with that and caressing her face. He was also thinking about the trip.

The main point of the trip was for Kikyo confront Abi about her treatment of Midoriko. They did not seem to get through to the bird demon in Sesshomaru's opinion. Abi was much too frightened of her mother, who was the driving force in keeping Abi from communicating with Midoriko. He could understand her stance on things just a bit because he had been in a similar situation, but he had walked out on his father instead of breaking things off with Kikyo. He did not see why Abi would not do the same if she felt strongly for Midoriko and Kikyo seemed to think that the pair did feel strongly for each other.

Kikyo believed her sister's word when Midoriko stated that she had feelings for Abi and that she missed the bird demon. As far as Abi was concerned, Kikyo was more reading her than taking her word on anything. Sesshomaru was inclined to agree with her now that he had seen Abi while Midoriko was being brought up. She was just too defensive and too open with her reactions when it came to Midoriko. Because he was able to see that Abi more than likely cared deeply for Midoriko made it harder for him in understanding why she would obey her mother.

He looked down at Kikyo and thought about when his father ordered him to leave her. He could not fathom leaving her because someone ordered her to, even if it was his father. Leaving Kikyo had to be his moronic choice, which he had made once and he would never make that mistake twice. Now, he figured that if their relationship was going to end, it would have to be her choice because he knew that he would never be do something so stupid again.

He decided not to think about it anymore. It did not matter since she was still with him and he was not going to let her go. And best of all, she did not seem like she was going to be going anywhere anytime soon.

--------------

Kikyo decided to put the interaction with Abi out of her mind when they got home. She felt like the ball was in Abi's court now. The bird demon could either drop the ball or run with it now. It was all on her.

"Do you have work tomorrow?" Sesshomaru inquired while going to put their luggage in the bedroom. Kikyo would put the things away after being in the apartment for about an hour or so, as that was her habit.

"I did take a couple of afternoon appointments," she answered.

"Why do you do this?" he asked, almost sounding exhausted for her. He always took the day off after they got back from a trip just because he knew that he was not going to feel like dealing with the people at his firm after having a splendid time with his beloved. He preferred to have an adjustment day to get his mind ready to go back to work and he wished that she would do the same in order for him to spend the day with her.

"Because people need healthcare," she answered almost as if she was amused by his question.

Sesshomaru sighed because he could not argue that answer. He did not feel like arguing anyway. He just grabbed Kikyo into his arms and unceremoniously dropped her on the bed. She looked at him, as if she was upset. He smirked at her before leaning down to kiss her.

"What about your healthcare?" he asked after breaking the long, passionate embrace. He made sure not to move too far from her as he spoke to her, just in case the urge to kiss her came up again.

"Sessho," she said as she reached up and put a hand on his cheek. He leaned into her touch as he always did, silently appreciating how delightful she made him feel.

"You're a wonderful little angel, you know that?" he commented.

"Thank you," she replied.

He expected that. He always thought that it was an odd response, but it went perfectly with her. He smiled at her a little bit and then placed an almost chaste kiss to her lips, which caused her to smile.

"Would you marry me, angel?" Sesshomaru inquired, seeming very random with that question to his lover.

"Excuse me?" she replied, not sure if she heard right. They had never talked about something so deep and the question seemed so completely out of the blue. It was rather unlike him.

"Oh, no, forgive me," he said, as if his previous request had been an accident.

The platinum-haired male crawled off of the bed and went to their luggage. Kikyo propped herself up on her elbows to see what he was doing. She was confused by his proposal and thought that it was a mistake. He had apologized after all, but he was acting strangely in her opinion, especially since he was rifling through a bag of theirs.

"Ah, here we go," Sesshomaru muttered to himself and he turned his attention back to her.

Kikyo did not see anything, so she did not know what he was talking about. He returned to her and pulled her to the edge of the bed. She kept her eyes locked on him because he still was not acting like he usually did. He then kneeled before her.

"Kikyo, you are a very special woman. You are perfect and you are my angel. So, once again, will you marry me?" Sesshomaru proposed again, pulling out a box and displaying a diamond encrusted ring that was wrapped in a white gold band to his beloved.

Kikyo was stunned into silence and it showed on her face. He was not making a mistake it would seem. He was seriously proposing marriage to her. She never would have thought the day would come and she actually did not know how she wanted to answer. She loved him, yes, but she was not sure if she wanted to get married again. Marriage had not left a satisfying taste in her mouth, even though she knew that he was not the man that she used to be married to. He was nothing like that man that she used to be married to.

"Angel?" Sesshomaru said because of her silence and the intense look in her eyes. He thought that it would be a no-brainer question, but she seemed to be thinking heavily on it and he knew why. "Give me a chance, Kikyo. You know I won't be like him. I won't suddenly transform into a monster once you become my wife," he said. He would have been insulted that she could even think such a thing, but he knew that she was still rather mentally scarred thanks to that hanyou bastard that she had once been tied to.

"But, we are doing so well as we are," she pointed out as she realized that she was leaving him hanging. It seemed like a rather safe way to answer instead of just bluntly saying "no." The fact of the matter was that she did not want to be married again.

"I know we are," he concurred.

"Then why can't we continue on in this manner?" she inquired, putting her arms around him and leaning her head against his, hoping that the intimate contact would let him know that she did love him still and always wanted to be with him, but she did not have any desire to get married.

"I would prefer that we move forward," he replied. Since he had no intention to ever leave Kikyo, marriage was a logical step for him.

"I would prefer that we stay still," she said. She could not offer up a reason, but it was what she wanted.

Sesshomaru sighed; his perfect woman was frightened of marriage, he guessed. He could not see any other reason for why she would not accept his proposal, yet she still wanted to stay in the relationship. He was not sure what he should do.

"I still love you," she stated soundly to show him that it was nothing against him.

"I know," he replied and rose enough to place another kiss to her elegant mouth. He did believe her. His angel would never lie, but it was still rather bothersome that she had not accepted his proposal. He thought that it was such a grand idea.

She returned the show of affection, but it felt almost sorrowful. She felt sorry and hurt that she could not accept his proposal and because of those feelings, she clutched him tightly, but that did not make her feel any better and she still could not accept what he had offered her.

She stared at him as the kiss ended and they pulled away from each other. Even now, looking into his beautiful golden eyes, the eyes that often told him more than his mouth ever would, and she still could not accept his proposal. She just did not want to get married.

----(Next day)

"You're mighty quiet," Midoriko noted, speaking to Kikyo. They were having lunch at Kikyo's request. She just did not feel up to seeing Sesshomaru until it was absolutely necessary and that was why she called her sister for lunch.

"Last night…" Kikyo started to say, but she was not sure if she wanted to continue. She was not sure if she even wanted to talk about it. She actually felt ashamed of herself and she had no desire to express that.

"Last night what?" Midoriko asked, not used to either of her sisters not finishing a sentence once they started.

"Sesshomaru…" Kikyo trailed off again, looking away when she ceased speaking. She pressed her hands together and then leaned against them, still casting her gaze out into the world and not on her sister.

"Did that dog do something to you?" Midoriko inquired in a forceful tone. She would destroy that filthy mutt demon if he hurt her sister!

"He did." Kikyo still did not look at her older sister. She was obviously a little dazed because she did not pick up on her sister's angry tone to assure the eldest that he had not done something truly wrong. She sort of wished that he had not done it, though.

"What?" Midoriko demanded to know. After lunch, she was going to drive over to Sesshomaru's office and slay him with her bare hands, she silently vowed.

"He proposed to me," the middle sister confessed.

Midoriko was speechless for a moment and she was in utter shock. Her mouth was hanging open slightly, her eyes were wide, and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He proposed to her? And yet, Kikyo looked almost as if he had broken up with her. It was an odd thing and she did not know what to make of it.

"He proposed to you? So, you accepted?" Midoriko asked.

"I did not," Kikyo responded, which utterly shocked her elder sibling.

"You didn't? But, don't you adore this man?" the eldest pointed out. It did not seem logical at all for her sister to deny herself marriage with the man that she was completely fond of.

"I do. I love Sesshomaru with all my heart and I've never felt so much guilt and pain over saying no, yet it still doesn't bring me to want to accept. I don't know what to do. We hardly spoke to each other last night and this morning, he did not even give me any grief over taking the bus to work. He did not even offer me a ride to work. I understand that he would be upset with my answer, but I fear that I might have ruined our relationship," Kikyo stated.

Midoriko nodded to show that she understood her sister's position. She could only guess that a good way to ruin a relationship would be to turn down a proposal. Sesshomaru was a reasonable fellow, though; well, when it came to listening to Kikyo anyway, he was reasonable. She was still in shock to find out that her sister had turned down the proposal, though.

"Kikyo, are you afraid to marry Sesshomaru?" Midoriko asked curiously. It was the only thing to explain why the doctor would not agree to marry her beloved.

"No," Kikyo quickly denied that charge. She was not afraid to do anything with Sesshomaru, especially marry him, she mentally argued. There was no reason for her to be afraid to marry Sesshomaru, she told herself. She just did not want to get married since they had such a magnificent relationship going at the moment; well, it was magnificent until last night.

"Then why would you turn down the proposal of a man that you utterly adore?" Midoriko asked, almost as if she had trapped her sister. There could be no other reason than fear, which had have been brought on by Kikyo's prior experience in marriage.

"Because I think we're fine where we are," the doctor argued.

"You can't stay that way forever. You need to go as far as you can. If you stop before hand, you've only given up," the eldest countered.

"I haven't given up," Kikyo stated soundly.

"You have. You love this man, but you won't marry him? Why? Because you're first marriage was to a sadistic psychopath? While Sesshomaru might be close to being a sociopath, he's nothing like that filthy hanyou," Midoriko pointed out. No one was like that sick bastard that had practically tricked Kikyo into being with him and Sesshomaru should not be punished for that man in Midoriko's opinion.

"Sister, do you want me to marry Sesshomaru?" Kikyo asked curiously.

"I want you to not give into your fear. I also don't want you putting Sesshomaru on the level of that man. He is not out to hurt you like that bastard. He genuinely cares about you and I know you know that. I know I give him a hard time and everything, but I know he wants the best for you and if you ever tell him I even thought that, let alone said it, I will strangle you with your own hair," Midoriko replied, sounding quite serious with that threat. She would be damned if Sesshomaru knew that she actually approved of him.

"He wouldn't believe me I did mention it. I can hardly believe it and I'm sitting right here," the doctor remarked and she meant that. She knew that her sister and her beloved did not hate each other as much as they pretended, but she never would have guessed that Midoriko would encourage her to marry a demon. But, she supposed that her big sister was not really against demons anymore.

"Honestly, Kikyo, I can understand your apprehension to this after what happened the first time you got married, but Sesshomaru is not Naraku. I also know that he hurt you once, but he set that right and I doubt that he would ever do such a thing again. Come on, sister, you're always so bold. It's gotten you this far. Why not continue being bold?" Midoriko commented with a bit of a smile.

"Am I so bold?" Kikyo asked with a puzzled and incredulous face. She never felt bold, especially at the moment.

"You go for what you want, hoping for the best and more often than not, making it a good decision if you can. It really only failed you once. Be bold, sister. If not, you'll begin to regret," Midoriko answered.

Kikyo nodded. Inaction did lead to regret, as far as she was concerned anyway. She often took risks because she did not want to look back and say that she wished she had done something. She did not look back and wish that she had not done something, even that first marriage. It was a horrible decision, but she had learned from it, so she did not regret it.

"If I were to marry Sesshomaru, I would have us joined with a powerful demon clan. That does not bother you?" Kikyo inquired, even though she figured that her big sister had about as much against demons as she did now.

"I have nothing against the demons that we are close to," Midoriko answered.

Kikyo nodded to that and sighed. She stared at her elder sister, wondering what made Midoriko so in favor of her accepting the proposal, but she decided that she did not care. To her, Midoriko had talked some sense into her. The confusion that she had been feeling was a sign to her that she was working her way toward regretting declining and thinking that she had ruined her relationship with Sesshomaru.

Midoriko smiled a bit, knowing that she had gotten through to Kikyo. She was happy for her younger sister. She knew that Kikyo loved Sesshomaru and she supposed that Sesshomaru returned the emotion as best he could. She was certain that he would take care of her sister as best he could and so far, his best seemed to be up to par; well, really, his best seemed to be phenomenal, but she did not want to give him that much credit. He should not be punished for something that a psychotic malcontent did to Kikyo in her opinion, especially since he was the one that freed Kikyo from that maniac.

--------------

Sesshomaru smelled raspberries coming from the apartment before he entered. It was not an overwhelming fragrance, but it had his attention. He wondered why the scent was gently blowing out of the apartment. When he entered, he figured that he could take a guess.

The apartment was covered in darkness except for the sight of two candles on the dining room table, which were giving off the raspberry aroma. He gently shut the door behind him as he entered the place and stepped out of his shoes. He approached the table and saw a meal prepared. He did not react to what he guessed was a peace offering. No romantic dinner would make him recover her declining on his desire to marry her. He was thoroughly wounded by that, even though he would never admit, even to himself.

"Have a seat, sweetheart," Kikyo said as she stepped out of the shadows.

Sesshomaru cast his gaze over to his beloved and his mouth nearly fell from his jaw onto the floor. Kikyo was wearing a little red dress that hugged her body in a very suggestive and seductive way and it stopped above her knees. She had on matching, scarlet lipstick and even had on a pair of earrings that he had purchased her. She had taken the time to finally get her ears pierced just for him.

"Kikyo," he whispered.

"Have a seat," she repeated.

Sesshomaru obeyed for lack of a better thing to do; he was practically a trained puppy for her as long as she was in that outfit. She walked over to him and just looked down at him with her intense chocolate eyes. It was almost like she was hypnotizing him, but really, the gaze brought him out of his trance.

She was about to walk away and sit down in the empty chair, but he took her by the wrist. She turned back him, wondering what he was doing. He did not speak, but stared at her, as if he was trying to figure out what she was trying to do. He decided against suffering through the curiosity and getting his answer now. He pulled her back to him, looking her over, before looking her in the eye.

"What's this all about?" he inquired. It was a demand, even though his tone was almost the same as always. She could detect the little change in his voice that made the question a demand.

"Does everything need a reason? Why can't just have a romantic dinner together?" she countered.

"Tell me."

"Please, calm down, beloved," she implored him.

"What are you trying to do?"

"Correct my mistake."

"Correct your mistake?"

"If the proposal is still open, I would love nothing in this world than to marry you, sweetheart," she stated.

Sesshomaru did not react outwardly. No muscle tick, no blink, no nothing to let her know what was going on in his mind. His grip on her did not tighten or lessen and she was not sure on what was going to happen. She unknowingly gulped because she was nervous that the offer might no longer be on the table. Now, she was truly frightened.

"And you thought this would help me agree?" he asked, fingering the hem of her dress. He wondered where she had even picked up such an outfit. He knew that she never wore such clothing, even though he was not going to complain if she started. He just disliked that she seemed to be using it as a prop against him.

"Well, I didn't think it would hurt," she replied honestly. She did not see the harm in looking sexy for her man, especially if it would assist in her keeping him.

Sesshomaru absently nodded. "You were right," he admitted.

Kikyo laughed a bit and he pulled her down into his lap. He kissed her fervently on the lips while his hands decided to explore her body while it was covered in such tantalizing cloth. He tried turning her in his lap so that she would have her legs around his waist. She could tell what he was trying to do and she could guess what was on his mind, but she resisted enough for him to pull away from her and look at her.

"What are you doing?" he inquired. She had to expect his reaction, he thought. She had to want his reaction to have on such clothing, so why was she resisting him?

"Does this mean that the engagement is on?" she asked.

"Of course," he answered the obvious. As if he could or would just cast his angel aside after she had agreed to spend the rest of her life with him. She had given him just what he desired. "What made you change you mind?" he inquired.

"I'm not allowed to tell you," she answered with a bit of a smile.

Sesshomaru decided not to press. The important thing was not why, but that she _had_ changed her mind. He went back to kissing her and managed to turn her in his lap that time. As soon as she moved and the dress shifted, his hands went back to exploring her body, but now they were underneath the dress.

--------------

Midoriko thought about what she had told Kikyo. She had actually encouraged Kikyo marry Sesshomaru. She wondered if her depression, which she only occasionally acknowledged to herself, had caused her to become insane. She scoffed; she knew that she had done the right thing. She smiled to herself, feeling good for the first time in a long time because she had done the right thing.

It was late at night and she could not sleep. She went to make herself a cup of tea and eat some cake. She sighed and thought about her first time in being bold; it was her first time in her opinion anyway. Despite the way it turned out, she did not regret it; well, she did not regret it completely. She wished that she had told her sisters about her relationship sooner, along with her sexual preferences. But, other than that, she was rather happy about what happened.

She had enjoyed her time with Abi. She would have liked things turning out in a different manner. She had never felt the way that she did about Abi until the bird demon came along. It was a pleasant feeling that she would have liked to continue and that she desired to return.

She supposed that her time with Abi helped her in understanding Kikyo's relationship with Sesshomaru and it helped her in convincing her younger sister to go for what she wanted. She could tell that the couple did feel deeply for each other and they should move forward with their relationship. She was happy for them to be doing so, not that she would say that with Sesshomaru in earshot.

She finished her tea and cake and was about to go to sleep, but her cell phone started going off. She wondered who could be calling her at such a late hour. She looked at the phone and saw that she had a received a text message. It was a very strange message because it was from a number that she did not know and it requested simply that she "open the door."

She wondered what was going on, but she could sense someone at the door. The aura was low, so she could not tell if it was someone that she knew. She went to the door and looked through the peephole to see who could be calling her and emitting such a low aura. She gasped when she saw who was at the door and quickly opened it.

"Hey, sexy," Abi greeted her with an almost wicked smirk. She wanted to surprise her little human, so she had been suppressing her demonic aura to avoid Midoriko sensing her.

"Abi, what are you doing here?" Midoriko inquired in a cross between suspicious and delighted.

"I could've sworn I said I would try to come back soon and here I am," the bird demon answered in a lighthearted tone, trying her best to seem normal and that she had not been the one causing her precious human such agony for so long because of fear.

"Don't act so nonchalant about things," Midoriko huffed. She wanted to scream, but it was very late and she did not want to disturb anyone, especially her little sister, who had school in the morning.

"Can I come in?" Abi requested. "We can talk," she added, now sounding a bit vulnerable. She was anxious with her lover's tone toward her, thinking that she might have ruined things to the point where they could not be together anymore.

Midoriko sighed; she seemed both tired and defeated. "Fine, come in."

Abi took her up on that, bringing in luggage with her, which consisted of two roll bags and a duffle bag tied onto one of the roll bags. Midoriko craned an ebony eyebrow to the suitcases coming in. She closed the door without bringing the bags up. Abi looked around the apartment and nodded.

"I pictured you living some place like this. It's cozy, like…home," Abi commented and she was not referring to her home. Her home was a giant mansion. She meant what home was like for most other people. It gave off a warm, welcoming feeling, which her home certainly did not do. She liked the apartment already and she hoped that she would be welcomed back at other dates.

"It is home," Midoriko pointed out.

"Well, for you and yours, yes."

"So, Abi, you wanted to talk. Talk," Midoriko practically demanded.

"Wow, so blunt. No offers of drink or food?" Abi asked, trying to regain some control over the situation. As a demon and a princess, she was used to being in control of things most of the time, but it would seem that Midoriko was not going to allot her that position.

"No."

"Wow," Abi muttered as she looked away for a long moment, shame buried deep in her eyes. "You must be rather upset with me," she commented before turning her gaze back to her lover.

"Rather doesn't begin cover it."

"I gathered as much. Precious, I don't want you to be angry with me. I didn't want things to be this way. I was planning to call you at least every day. I was planning to come back as soon as I could and stay for as long as I could," Abi informed the human in a sincere tone.

"Then why didn't you?" Midoriko asked in a cold voice to cover up the pain that the bird demon had caused her and how Abi's presence was just opening up the few wounds that had managed to heal.

"My mother. Look, I come from a family deep into human hatred. She would never approve of how we feel about each other. She found out that we were just hanging out and going to places and that enraged her. I don't know how she found out, but I know after I finished the work that she wanted me home for, she ripped into me for associating with a human."

"So, you did it out of fear of your mother?"

"Well, that and I was scared that she might hurt you. I was so scared that she would hurt you badly. But, I know I'm hurting you worse by following her orders and I just can't do it anymore. I want to be with you for as long as I can be. I want you to take me back. Please," Abi requested with an almost tearful look in her eyes.

Midoriko was silent for a while, which frightened Abi more so than she already was. The human female remembered all of the pain and hurt that she had gone through when Abi did not return her calls. It was agony on top of agony every time she dialed that number and got no response. With every day that went by and no word from the princess merely compounded the pain that she was in rather than lessen it. That sort of told her how she needed to reply to Abi's plea.

"I have to take you back, Abi. Do you know how much it hurts to be without you?" Midoriko inquired.

"I do," Abi replied and it was the stone, cold truth.

The pair rushed at each other and they embraced. They noted that it felt emotionally, psychology, and even physically relieving to be holding the other. They belonged together, they silently decided. They needed to stay together.

--------------

Next time: the end.


	20. Life of the party

I don't own these characters.

20: Life of the party

Kaede woke up and went about her usual morning routine. She did note something odd, which was that Midoriko was not up, which meant that she was not going to have a great cooked breakfast. She had no problem with eating cold cereal, although she liked pancakes more. She got ready for school and was about to leave, but she noticed that Midoriko was still not up. It was strange that her big sister was not up because they usually left the apartment together. She figured that she should at least see if Midoriko was going to work and check to see if anything was wrong. She went to Midoriko's room door and opened it without knocking; it was just the way they did things in the apartment.

"Hey, Mi—Whoa!" Kaede said under her breath, praying that it was not too loud. Her prayers did not seem to be answered because the occupant of the room woke up and it was not her sister. The person was the reason for her outburst.

"You must be Kaede," Abi commented in a low voice when she caught sight of the teen in the doorway. She was laying the bed, curled up with Midoriko, who was still sleeping.

"And you must be Abi," the girl replied, not sure what else she should say or if she should say anything else. At least she did not sound disgusted or nervous, the demon noted. She did look a bit confused, which was mostly due to the fact that she had not expected to see the princess in bed with her sister.

"That I am. I don't think I was supposed to meet you, at least not like this," the bird demon remarked while glancing down at her snoozing lover. She was pretty sure that Midoriko would want her to meet her little sister in a proper fashion.

"You're probably right. So, I'm just going to back out of the room and erase this from my memory," Kaede quipped, even though she had not witnessed anything truly scarring.

"Killer plan," Abi concurred, going so far as to give the teen a thumbs' up.

Kaede did as she said, quietly backing out of the room and closing the door as she did so. Abi turned her attention to Midoriko since she was up and she could just admire her lover in her sleep. Looking down at the pale lawyer caused the princess to smile softly. She was so thankful that the human had given her a second chance. She was going to try her best not to blow it a second time.

There was the issue of what was going to happen when her mother found out that she was with a human. She decided not to worry about that at the moment. The only thing that mattered right now was that she was with Midoriko.

"Yeah, you're certainly all that matters, precious," Abi whispered as she wrapped her arms around the sleeping body next to her. She pulled Midoriko close to her, which woke up the human female.

"Morning," Midoriko greeted her lover in a low voice.

"Morning to you," Abi replied while leaning in for a kiss, which she promptly got. It certainly helped make things a good morning for the bird demon.

"What time is it?" Midoriko asked curiously as she pulled away from her lover's mouth. She noted that her alarm had not gone off.

"I don't know," the bird demon answered honestly. She really could care less about the time. "I did hear someone leave earlier. I'm guessing it was your little sister," she commented.

"Then I'm late for work," Midoriko realized and she was about to hop up from bed, but she stopped herself. She was finally with Abi again and she was going to leave for work? That would be stupid, her brain pointed out.

"You're actually going to leave me, precious?" Abi inquired with an exaggerated pout and she then ran her leg up and down Midoriko's calf. She honestly wanted her precious little human to stay right where she was all day long.

"On second thought, no," Midoriko replied, especially not if the petting under the covers were going to continue.

Abi practically grinned. "All day in bed?" she asked, perhaps wishing out loud.

"Well, all morning," the human conceded. She doubted that it was plausible for her to stay in bed all day, even if she was lying with her wonderful princess.

"It'll do for now," Abi replied and embraced Midoriko while leaning in for another, deeper kiss. It felt too good to be back with her precious little human.

--------------

The phone ringing startled Midoriko and Abi, who were still in bed. The bird demon looked around, almost in a panic, wondering what the hell that horrible noise was while Midoriko knew to reach for the phone. She was not sure what possessed Kaede the day that she changed the rings on the house phones, but she had to remember to change them back.

"That's your telephone making that disgusting noise?" Abi asked in disbelief. It had caused her to almost jump out of her skin; sometimes her spectacular hearing was such a curse.

Midoriko nodded and then she answered the call. "Hello?"

"Hello, big sister," Kikyo greeted the lawyer.

"Hey, Kikyo. What made you call the house?" the elder sister asked curiously.

"You have your cell phone turned off and I called your office only to find out that you called in sick. Are you feeling all right?" the younger sister asked with concern in her voice. She hoped that nothing happened with Midoriko, feeling that her big sister had gone through enough.

"I'm perfectly fine," Midoriko assured the doctor.

"Then why'd you call in sick?" Kikyo inquired, sounding slightly confused, which meant that she was very bewildered because it had actually sneaked into her tone.

"Um…I have company," Midoriko admitted in a bit of a shy, almost embarrassed tone. Abi thought her lover looked so cute when she was embarrassed and that thought caused her to lean over to give Midoriko a peck on the lips.

"Company?" Kikyo echoed, still rather puzzled, but then it came to her. "Female company?"

"Yes."

"Would this female company happen to be a bird demon princess?" Kikyo asked rather curiously.

"Yes."

Kikyo was quiet for a moment, which Midoriko was not sure what to make of. Kikyo was just nodding to herself. She knew that Abi would do the right thing, but she did not think that she would do it so quickly. She thought that it might take the princess at least a few days to sit on the information.

"Are you happy then, sister?" Kikyo asked.

"Very," Midoriko admitted with a smile.

"That's good. Then enjoy your day with her. Should I call Kaede and tell her to stay with us?" the middle sister asked.

"Um…I don't know. Maybe she should meet Abi," Midoriko replied.

"Doesn't sound like a bad idea. Are you sure you're ready for that? It does say a lot that you want her to meet your little sister."

"She already met you," Midoriko pointed out.

"Speaking of meeting me, free up your weekend."

"Why would I be doing that?"

"Engagement announcement. Sesshomaru wants to inform the families all at once. He won't say it, but I think he wants to do that to avoid angering his parents by having one find out before the other," Kikyo explained. She could just imagine what would happen to her beloved if one of his parents knew about the engagement before the other. He would probably have to go into hiding and never come out.

"Sounds like a safe plan. Just tell me when and where and I'll be there. I'll also try my best to make sure your baby sister doesn't bring skates to the affair," Midoriko stated.

"That would be greatly appreciated," Kikyo commented.

"I'm sure it would be."

"All right, well, I'm going to let you get back to your company," the middle sister said.

Midoriko was thankful that Kikyo was not a smart-aleck and she did not have to suffer some remark with that farewell. They disconnected the call and Midoriko turned her attention back to Abi. The princess smiled.

"Are you going to be here on the weekend?" Midoriko inquired.

"I'd like to be here for as long as I can, which is however long you'll have me," Abi replied. She had no time limit on her stay since she had come on her own, not with permission from her mother.

"What about your job?"

"Well, by the time my mother finds out what I'm doing, I'm pretty sure I'm going to be fired, so I won't have a job to worry about," Abi answered and she was being serious, but she was smiling. She did not care about the job; as long as her mother did not kill her when she found out what was going on, everything was fine by her. She just wanted to be able to stay with her precious human.

"Well, how about this weekend you be my date for an engagement announcement?" Midoriko proposed nonchalantly.

"Your date?" Abi was surprised to hear such a word from her lover, not just the word, but also her casual tone about things.

"Yes, my date."

"I'd love to," the bird demon answered with a bright smile. "Now, whose engagement announcement thing are we going to?"

"Kikyo and Sesshomaru."

"She's marrying dog-boy?" Abi inquired incredulously; her expression matched her tone. Apparently, she really could not believe that one. "Your sister is a strong female to be willing to put up with _that_ for the rest of her life."

"He'll be good to her, like he has been."

"Oh, so you approve?" the princess asked, still in disbelief.

"I'm the one that talked her into accepting the proposal," Midoriko admitted with a little shrug. She honestly believed that Sesshomaru would take the best care of her sister. It was strange to think, but it was the truth as far as she was concerned.

"Really? That is shocking. You sisters really take care of each other, huh?" Abi noted. Between Kikyo's visit to her and Midoriko's approval of Sesshomaru, it would seem that the sisters did have each others' backs and wanted the others to be happy. Even the way that Kaede did not freak out over seeing them in bed together attested to the fact that the sisters wanted each other to be happy in the bird demon's opinion.

"We try our best."

"Well, I'm glad I'm on your side then. Are you sure you want to take me there as your date, though?" Abi asked curiously. She knew that Kikyo knew about her and Midoriko and well, Kaede knew too now, but surely she had more family that she probably did not want to know about them.

"Of course I'm sure. My sisters don't mind, Sesshomaru doesn't care, and the rest of my family, if they're there, they'll just have to deal with it," Midoriko answered and she meant that. She had had to deal with life without the princess and she did not like that, so she was not about to lose Abi because her family would not be able to deal with the fact that she was a lesbian. Her sisters accepted things and that was good enough for her. She was with Abi, end of statement.

Abi smiled. It was nice to know that Midoriko was not ashamed of their relationship or looking to hide it. It was also great that Midoriko was with her, even though she was pretty sure that her mother was going to destroy both of them, yet Midoriko was still sticking with her.

"You know, precious, I think I love you," Abi commented in a low, sincere tone.

"I think I love you too," Midoriko replied in earnest. Sure, they were not out and out declarations of love, but they would do for the moment.

----(New day)

Sesshomaru frowned, almost as if he was not happy, as he stood in the rented room of a classy restaurant. Kikyo was standing by his side; they were both dressed formally. He was in a white suit as was she; it sometimes amused him how she refused to wear dresses most of the time. They were greeting their guests as they came in; mostly everyone that they had invited was there already. Sesshomaru's parents had not shown up yet, though. She noticed Sesshomaru's face and wondered just what his seemingly foul mood was directed toward.

"Why do you look do upset, sweetheart?" Kikyo inquired, taking his hand with hers in order to relax him somewhat.

"I'm not upset," he replied, his face tense and he did not even grace her with a glance.

"Then why are you looking like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you have a dentist appointment to have all of your teeth pulled," she commented.

"Oh, how I wish I had such an excuse," he grumbled. He was starting to wonder what he was thinking in having such a gathering.

"Then what's the problem?"

"I have to deal with my mother tonight," he pointed out. He actually sounded exhausted just thinking about that demon woman.

Kikyo only smiled a bit. She had met Sesshomaru's mother a couple of times and did not see the problem with the dog demoness. Well, she did not have a problem with the demoness anyway. But, she knew his problem with his mother, which would be the fact that his mother seemed to get a huge thrill out of teasing him. He, of course, did not appreciate the extremely playful side that she had when it came to him.

"Are you talking about me already?" a voice asked from behind the couple; it was practically a chirp.

The couple turned around with shocked expressions on their faces, but they quickly recovered. They did wonder how the hell she got behind them without alerting them in anyway. She was just too full of irksome surprises in Sesshomaru's opinion.

"They do say speak of the devil and she shall appear," Sesshomaru remarked in dry tone as he faced his mother.

"I'll remember you said that if I happen to have a friend that needs escorting around the city," his mother retorted without missing a beat. She even had a cruel smile on her face as she spoke.

"Father told you about that, did he?" Sesshomaru inquired in his usual tone, although he was not pleased to find out that his mother was aware of his horrible job escorting around Abi. After all, she might actually think to use him in such a manner one day.

"Said you did an excellent job and I should definitely recommend you, especially since Kikyo is so understanding of such things." She continued to smile like the devil her son claimed she was.

Sesshomaru made a sound low in his throat, sort of like a snort and a growl that got mixed together. It seemed that he was not happy with that idea and it did not help that his mother smiled as she spoke. There was also the fact that he knew that his love was not comfortable with the idea of him escorting anyone else around the city. His mother decided to leave him be and walked off to mingle with the other guests. Sesshomaru watched her walk away and then turned his attention back to the front, wondering where in the hell his father and stepmother were.

"My father is typically never late," Sesshomaru commented under his breath.

"Calm down, Sessho. He's not very late. Only ten minutes," Kikyo pointed out. He was stressing much too much in her opinion. Everything was going to go fine, or so she hoped.

"I know, but it's still strange."

Kikyo did not respond; she thought that her beloved was just tense because of the news that they had and she was mostly right about that. A few seconds later, Sesshomaru's father and stepmother appeared; they thankfully did not sneak up behind the couple like his mother had done. The couples greeted each other and then went into the room with everyone else.

"You invited your mother?" Sesshomaru's father inquired before he even caught sight of the demoness. He could smell her, though.

"With luck, Rin's cuteness will distract her," Sesshomaru commented.

"Sounds promising," his father said in agreement.

Sesshomaru nodded and when they focused on everyone in the room, they saw that things were going as hoped. They both breathed sighs of relief when they saw Rin and Kaede distracting the dog demoness, who seemed to think that peculiar human girls were just about the most adorable things on the planet. Sesshomaru and his father hoped that things stayed that way; Sesshomaru wanted that because he did not want to hear his mother's mouth and his father wanted that because Sesshomaru's mother had a bad habit of flirting with him, even in front of his wife's face. Now, they were friends and everything, but she took things too far and even though it was all in jest, it was still annoying.

Sesshomaru and Kikyo mingled a bit instead of just announcing the point of the gathering. Kikyo was happy to see that Midoriko had shown up with Abi and that they were getting along. No one from their family seemed to be bothered by the couple, but then again, they probably did not know they were a couple. She doubted that Midoriko had introduced Abi around as her girlfriend; she was very right about that.

But, Midoriko had introduced Abi to her aunt and her cousins, Kagome and Souta. Abi seemed rather freaked out when she met Kagome because she noticed what the rest of the world noticed, which was that Kagome and Kikyo looked almost exactly alike. It was then that Midoriko had to explain that their mothers had been twin sisters and it would seem that their genes were strong. Abi agreed with that assessment from what she could see.

Midoriko's family was very polite to Abi. Kagome did excuse herself after a few minutes of meeting the princess to go yell at Inuyasha from what they could tell, even though she did not use those exact words. She actually just thought that he was eating too much from a snack table that was pleased out and she wanted to inform him that he needed to be more civil about it, but since he was hardheaded and did not want to listen, she let her temper get the better of her, as usual.

Midoriko then went to go keep an eye on Kaede and found the teen busy telling Sesshomaru's mother about a trick that she and Rin did and they both pretty much split their foreheads open. Abi was almost certain that both teens were out of their minds as they told the tale with grins on their faces. Sesshomaru's mother looked thoroughly amused by the story and the enthusiasm of the girls.

"Then when we landed, it was really creepy," Kaede said to set up the finish of the story.

"Because we both landed wrong on the same foot and turned our ankles really badly, which was why we fell onto the guardrail and banged our heads," Rin explained.

"But, when our ankles healed, we did it again," Kaede added with a smile.

"You two are quite the athletes," Sesshomaru's mother commented brightly and then she noticed Midoriko and Abi standing there. She craned a curious eyebrow. "Shocking to see a bird demon amongst us, but I'm starting to see that being with humans is all rage," the dog demoness remarked.

Abi seemed a bit stunned and it was not the comment that made it so, although that was creepy too. She just had not anticipated Sesshomaru's mother being there. She knew that Sesshomaru got his smart mouth from the dog demoness, but unlike Sesshomaru, his mother knew no restraint and was rather good at being a smartass.

"You must be Kikyo's older sister. She's told me much about you. I'm guessing that Kaede is the lunatic of the family," the dog demoness commented, speaking to Midoriko.

"She thinks every human that owns a pair of skates is a lunatic," Rin whispered to Kaede, even though she knew that the silver-haired female would hear her.

"No, just you two," Sesshomaru's mother replied with an amused glint in her eyes.

Rin just made a face, which did not bother Sesshomaru's mother. Rin could practically get away with anything around Sesshomaru's mother, as long as it was done in jest; it was things like that that made her just adore Sesshomaru's mother. In fact, Rin had spent a few summers with Sesshomaru's mother; that was how much they seemed to like each other.

"Would anyone here happen to know why we were called here?" Sesshomaru's mother inquired curiously.

"I vote a celebration to take us off punishment," Rin said with hope in her voice.

"Oh, I like that idea," Kaede concurred with a smile.

"You two are wishing for the impossible right now. Punishment won't end until the school term is over," Midoriko informed them.

"This is so wrong," Rin and Kaede groaned simultaneously.

"Those grades were worse," Midoriko remarked quite seriously, holding her arms across her chest for a moment.

"I see where Kikyo gets her attitude from. I like you. Abi, keep this one," Sesshomaru's mother stated.

Abi made a face as if the dog demoness stepped on her foot with a spiked boot. It was just that the dog demoness was so casual about her words and yet commanding with them as well. Before Abi could say anything, Sesshomaru and Kikyo called their guests' attentions to the front of the room. Everyone did turn their attention to the couple.

"All right, everyone is probably curious as to why we called you here," Sesshomaru said and then he turned his attention to the door, as did all of the other people with demon blood in the room as well as those that could sense presences. "I get the feeling that this is going to be annoying, beloved," he whispered to Kikyo.

"What isn't when we all come together?" Kikyo replied.

"Oh, god," Abi muttered. "Where are the exits?" she wondered aloud.

"ABI!" a voice shrieked from outside. It was an ear-splitting cry that hurt the ears of all of the demons and a certain half-demon.

"Your mother?" Midoriko guessed, speaking to her date.

"Fuck yeah," Abi replied as the doors to the room burst open, revealing an ebony-haired female that looked very much like Abi. The princess actually hid behind Midoriko, who glanced back at her lover in disbelief.

Everyone stared at the female that just joined them. The demons in the room knew who she was and they could guess why she was there. Still, they were not happy to see her, especially Sesshomaru. After all, Abi's mother was interfering with his big announcement with Kikyo.

"Abi, get over here," the bird demoness commanded as she stepped into the room. She stared directly at the princess, who was still behind Midoriko. "Now," she added when Abi did not move. There was a very dangerous edge in her voice that everyone picked up on.

"Um…Mother…I…I…" Abi tried to stand up for herself, but damn it, her mother scared the hell out of her. She had never really angered her mother before and she thought that she had picked one hell of time and reason to start pissing her mother off. It was going to take at least a few minutes for her courage to even think to return to her.

"She's not leaving," Kikyo stated soundly since the princess seemed to be tongue-tied.

"Quiet, human," the bird leader ordered in a fury. It seemed like any second now the flames of Hell would blaze around her.

"You're not going to come in here and talk to Kikyo that way," Sesshomaru stated as he began approaching the uninvited guest.

"Wait, Sesshomaru," Abi said.

"What?" he inquired in an annoyed voice.

"Out of everybody in this room, I can't let you stand up for me," Abi replied. She would never be able to look herself in the mirror again. Yet, she was not moving from behind Midoriko.

"I'm not," he simply informed her. He was not standing up for the irksome bird demon, but for his angel. He was not going to let anyone, whoever the person was, disrespect the woman that he was going to marry.

"Abi, you get over here now. We're going home," her mother said firmly. She was not to be argued with on the matter.

"She's not leaving," Kikyo repeated as she moved and stood by Sesshomaru.

"Pathetic human, you won't tell me what to do with my own daughter," the bird leader growled while stepping in front of Kikyo.

Kikyo looked at the bird demon without fear in her chocolate eyes. The confrontational demon frowned and raised her hand, as if she planned to strike Kikyo. Kikyo did not appear frightened then and she did not move. Sesshomaru caught the bird demon's hand as she was about to bring it down on his beloved.

"I wouldn't recommend doing that," Sesshomaru commented coolly.

"Horrible fucking idea to try to hit Kikyo in front of all of her friends and family," Inuyasha remarked as he stepped over. Midoriko followed his lead, much to Abi's dismay because she had to go with her hiding place.

"Unhand me," Abi's mother commanded.

"Listen carefully, Abi's not leaving, but you are. You're interrupting a rather important event and it's not amusing," Sesshomaru informed her.

"Unhand me."

"Or else what?" Sesshomaru inquired in a daring tone. It was unlikely that she would try anything against him, not just because he was Sesshomaru, but his parents were right there and his crazy brother was there too. She knew that she was outnumbered and that was not even counting the fact that Kikyo, Midoriko, and Kagome had spiritual powers.

"Abi," her mother called her.

Midoriko glanced back at Abi, who was still behind her. She was not cowering or anything, but she did not look ready to stand up to her mother. She had her hand on Midoriko's shoulder, so Midoriko reached up and took Abi's hand.

"It's your decision, Abi. Where do you want to be?" Midoriko asked in a gentle and understanding tone.

Abi gulped. She stared at her mother, who was still being held by Sesshomaru. Her bottom lip began to tremble as her mother seemed to glare daggers at her soul and severed her courage completely from her being. Her heart beat so quickly from anxiety that it felt like it was going to explode any moment. And then she looked at Midoriko.

"Mother…" Abi said and then she stood up properly. "I want to stay with Midoriko. I…I… well, I really like her," she confessed in a stronger voice than she expected, but it was still a shaky tone. It was good enough for her to just have gotten the words out, though.

"You really like this pitiful, filthy human?" her mother said in a complete outrage. She had never heard such nonsense from anyone in her clan and she damn sure would not stand for hearing it from her own daughter.

"She's not pitiful or filthy and she's _my_ human," Abi replied with pride. She damn sure was not going to let anyone, even her own mother insult her precious Midoriko.

Her mother snarled in pure fury and moved, as if she was going to attack either Midoriko or Abi; it was hard to tell since they were right next to each other. Sesshomaru tightened his grip on the woman and held her at bay while Midoriko and Abi were trying to step in front of the other to protect each other. The bird leader shrieked an ear-splitting noise, much higher pitch than earlier, which hurt the ears of everyone in the room, especially the dog demons. Sesshomaru's grip slipped just enough for Abi's mother to break free.

"Curse these ears," all of the dog demons muttered while shaking their heads, hoping that would make the high pitch noise stop. They were going to be deaf for a few minutes and they knew that, but they hoped that the noise buzzing in their ears would dispel soon.

Abi's mother went straight for Midoriko, tackling her to the ground and planning to tear the lawyer to pieces for stealing away her daughter. Midoriko was shocked by the hit and did not think to act immediately because of how stunned she was. Kaede and Rin did react to the assault and they jumped on Abi's mother with the gope of getting the bird demon off of Midoriko. She quickly flung the teens from her person with great ease and turned her attention back to Midoriko, who was no longer in a stupor and she moved to grab the bird demon.

Kikyo was about to go assist her big sister, but she saw Midoriko had a grip on the infuriated bird demon. The doctor knew what was coming and she really doubted that Abi wanted her mother killed, so she did not move from where she was and did not add to what was coming. Midoriko released a shocking douse of spiritual energy into Abi's mother to get the bird demon off of her; had Kikyo joined in, it would have been enough spiritual energy to ruin the night completely because slaying a guest, even an uninvited one, was never good for a party. Midoriko quickly shot to her feet when she was done with her counterattack, keeping her eyes on her attacker as she fell back to the floor from the agony that Midoriko had just placed in her.

"Spiritual energy?" Abi's mother said in disbelief as smoke came from her body and she kneeled on the ground with the hope of gathering herself again. She was not going to give up so easily, even if she was in serious pain. "Not just any human, but a priestess?" she screamed at her daughter.

"There's more of that all around," Kagome declared since the bird demon did not seem to be down for the count and ready to keep on causing trouble.

"Much more," Kikyo concurred.

"What are they talking about?" Inuyasha shouted at his brother while pointing at the humans in the room.

"What?" Sesshomaru replied. And then he asked himself why he was even bothering with humoring Inuyasha? Inuyasha was just as deaf as he was at the moment.

"Mother, just go," Abi pled. She did not want to see her mother get hurt over her decision, but she was not going to leave with the older demon either. She was where she wanted to be, where she needed to be. That was not going to change and she wished that her mother just accepted that.

"You would choose these humans over me?" her mother demanded heatedly from her space on the floor. Part of her was hurt, but it was buried underneath all of the anger that she was feeling at the moment toward her foolish daughter and everyone else in the room.

"I don't want to choose. You're making me. Couldn't you just accept this?" Abi requested/pled. If only her mother could understand and accept it then everything would be fine because she had to stay with Midoriko.

"I refuse! I won't approve of you being with disgusting humans. If you stay here, you're not my daughter anymore. You're dead to me," her mother replied seriously, like her statement was set in stone.

"What's going on?" Inuyasha shouted at Sesshomaru, who only rolled his eyes. Inuyasha wanted to know what was going on because no one was attacking anyone anymore, but Abi's mother still looked rather cross.

"Mother, please," Abi begged in a sorrowful tone. Despite it all, she did love her mother and she would rather not lose the demoness because she had strong feelings for a human.

"Stay with your pathetic humans then," her mother replied in a hiss and she gracefully climbed to her feet despite the throbbing agony that she was in. She then turned calmly, exiting the room. She was not looking to feel the wrath of any more priestesses, especially if Midoriko had more power than she just exhibited. Besides, she was fairly certain that her always-loyal daughter would come to her senses soon and return to her. They had a strong mother/daughter bond after all.

"What the hell just happened!" Inuyasha begged to know.

"Will you stop talking! We can't hear you!" Sesshomaru hollered at his brother while motioning to his parents. Everyone then looked at Sesshomaru, who realized that he had just raised his voice around people that could hear him.

"What!" Inuyasha screamed, putting his hand to his ear.

Sesshomaru made an exasperated face, which caused his mother to laugh. Sesshomaru noticed his mother's expression and knew that she was laughing at him. He sighed, but his disposition changed as Kikyo attached herself to his arm. Once Sesshomaru and the other dog demons in the room could hear again, the couple decided to make their announcement before something else insane happened.

"We're getting married," Sesshomaru said rather unceremoniously. He was rather annoyed by now and just wanted to get it out in the open.

"And people swear he's like me," Sesshomaru's mother remarked. She was not the parent that was married to a human after all.

"Just don't screw it up," Inuyasha said to his brother with a good-natured grin on his face.

"Here, here," his father concurred. Sesshomaru did not find that very funny, but everyone did drink to the news and probably to Inuyasha's statement.

----(New day)

Sesshomaru and Kikyo were married in the summer. By that time, Rin and Kaede were off of punishment. They had brought home fantastic grades by the end of school and their summer was cleared for non-stop skating action. They were incredibly happy about that, planning to meet up with their friends the next spare moment that they had.

Abi was still with Midoriko. She had been cut off from everything that she had back when she lived with her mother, but she did not care. She had Midoriko and that was enough for her. She had not heard from her mother since the party and supposed that was just the way things were going to have to be until her mother got over her prejudice toward humans. She got her own apartment in the city and Midoriko found her a job at a local law firm. It felt good to be independent; she hated to think that Sesshomaru might be on to something with the way he worked his life out.

The wedding ceremony was not big; Sesshomaru and Kikyo had the same people from the engagement announcement at the wedding and no more than that. It also went off without nothing annoying happening, which surprised Sesshomaru because he swore that anytime Inuyasha was around something irksome was bound to happen. But, everything went off without a hitch. It was like magic. Well, it would be magic for him when they got to the honeymoon. They were going to be gone the whole summer on a trip around the world; Kikyo knew what he had planned for that trip since he did not hold the information in around her.

"We should get going. Don't want to miss our flight," Sesshomaru said to Kikyo with a bit of a smile.

"Of course not. It's the only place I'm going to get any sleep," she remarked with a small smile of her own.

"It is," he concurred and the newlyweds left for their honeymoon. Everyone hoped that everything worked out for the couple and they all took time to tell both Sesshomaru and Kikyo not screw anything up. Sesshomaru and Kikyo both silently vowed to try their best to make their marriage work.

--------------

The end.


End file.
